


Skies Unknown - A Strike Witches story

by Black_Skies_Ahead



Category: Strike Witches
Genre: Air combat, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Bermuda Triangle, Eventual Romance, F/M, First story, Science Fiction, Slow Burn, Su-35 Flanker-E, referenced music
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:35:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 26,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23579275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Black_Skies_Ahead/pseuds/Black_Skies_Ahead
Summary: A mercenary pilot disappear over the Bermuda Triangle during a joint-military exercise. What he finds on the other side is something he would've thought to be a dream. Or being high. Will he be able to return home or will he be stuck there forever?
Comments: 7
Kudos: 18





	1. Chapter 1: Where am I?

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is my first story on AO3 and with the Strike Witches/World Witches fandom. This was inspired by a dream if you can believe it. All rights are reserved to their respected parties.

Chapter 1: Where am I?

August 2nd, 2023 1:50 Hours  
  


* * *

Following the Coronavirus Epidemic, various nations' defensive capabilities were shortened with the decrease of able body men. This has left a market open for private military contractors to fill the void left by the plague, a prime opportunity. But for a pilot in the Martinez Security Service, it was just a normal day. Especially for his custom Su-35. It felt like an eternity to have the Russian-built aircraft with him, but he wouldn't trade it in for anything else.

Dressed in the company's standard green drab flight suit, Raynard Connolly stepped aboard the Su-35, the gray body with blue wing and nose stripes aircraft displacing the runway next to the Floridan evergreens. Today was a special day for Martinez Security as it was going to be a joint military show with the U.S. Navy Second Fleet within the Lucayan Archipelago. The two Saturn AL-41F1S roared to life as the Flanker-E taxied to the runway. There he waited for approval to take off.

"This is Falchion, ready for takeoff at runway 2.” He said as he waited for various other Martinez Security aircraft to take off. Figuring that it would be better to be rocking out something, he dragged his phone out and scrolled down to where his music was and put on Enchanter I from AC7. 

“This is the control tower to Falchion, you are cleared for takeoff. Be advised that wind gust is expected to reach up to 45 knots. Take care out there.”

When the beats started to come through the speaker, Connolly applied thrust. The Flanker-E rolled down the runway before taking off into the afternoon sky. Once airborne, Connolly retracted the flaps and landing gear and climbed to cruising altitude. He joined with the Martinez Security flight that would be participating in the exercise. 

Once airborne, Connolly adjusted the Flanker’s trim and set the autopilot accordingly for their destination and it was smooth flying the rest of the way. During the flight to the link up point, he decided to chat with fellow pilots to pass the time and prevent the boredom from kicking in as he flew over the endless sea.

“So, Viper, was it? What do you think this ‘joint show’ is going to be about?” He asked a F-15C pilot.

“Well, all things considered, probably about light air-to-air combat and maybe some showboating. You know, just a regular day in Martinez Security. Of course, I didn’t sign up to be a showpony.” The gruff pilot responded.

“Ah that’s right. You were part of the Gulf War attachment, right?”

“Damn straight. Four confirmed kills and unprecedented air superiority. Hmph, better than wasting away in an office building somewhere I guess.”

“Hm, to change the subject.” Connolly said as he took another look at the GPS up front, "It looks like we're approaching the Bermuda Triangle." He said before checking back. “So… Viper, you're a much older pilot, do you actually believe in the stories? I don't know if I do. I mean, it's certainly weird how so many planes and ships were lost in this specific area, but now with high-precision GPS, weather surveillance and other things… I just don't know."

“Bah. Those are just old superstition stories. I’m sure that they aren’t real or if they are, there is something to explain it. Besides, you are a Martinez Security’s pilot with nine of us and a fleet of the US Navy. If something were to happen, well, we got your back. Plus I know Mr. Burford would be mad that I lost someone underneath my wing.” Viper said with a light chuckle. "So just stick with me, kid. We'll make it through." 

As the flight entered the infamous triangle a storm began to brew and the sky darkened, reducing visibility and forcing Connolly to use Instrument Flight Rules. The noise of the rain and thunder was so loud that it was able to drown out the noise of the Flanker’s engines. As the flight flew further into the storm it only worsened. He had to rely upon navigation lights from other aircrafts to avoid a collision.

“Urgh, I don’t remember hearing about a storm in the weather report." Connolly said as he disabled the autopilot and took full control of the Su-35.

"Me neither. Put on your mask, kid." Viper ordered his wingman as he put on his own oxygen mask. "How the hell did it go from clear to shitty in mere seconds?" He checked his own instruments, everything functioning normally so far.

Connolly quickly prepared for the worse case scenario, a possible ejection over water. He couldn't believe what was before him as they proceeded deeper into the storm: he began to experience severe turbulence, the Flanker began to shake and Connolly fought to control the big fighter as it started to lose altitude...in a flat spin!

“Shit, I’m losing control and altitude. Viper, do you read me?!” Only static answered back to him. Wait, static?

“Viper? Martinez Security Flight? Anyone?!” Connolly asked to the void, but received no answer back. It seemed that he was alone and was about to crash into the ocean. Moments flash through his eyes about how he got there... only to come to the realization that he would be joining the myths of the Triangle. 

Connolly tried to fight the Flanker, the massive aircraft bucking and protesting like an angry cow as he wrestled with it in order to keep it airborne. To make things worse, the spinning was making him pull several G's to the side, increasing his effort to retain control. In the two years he flown the Flanker, he never had to deal with this amount of G's pulling to his side.

"Come on! Raise, you son of a bitch!" He screamed at the top of his lungs to the Su-35, while he cut power to the engines in hopes of pointing the nose down. If he could time his descent correctly, he could bring the engines back online and pull out. But that was a big IF.

Fearing the inevitable, Connolly lowered his sun visor and prepared to eject. As he prepared for his last resort, it was as if a miracle happened: the Su-35 was beginning to respond and stopped spinning, the wings gaining lift once again. Not missing a beat, he applied power back to the engines and pulled the stick hard, to regain altitude. When Connolly looked at the altimeter, he had lost over 8,000 feet, but things were about to get from to worse. He looked out of the cockpit canopy and the sky began to change color like an Aurora Borealis. It was some kind of energy vortex, looking like a massive tunnel… the Flanker easily being pulled into it like a wad of dust into a vacuum cleaner. As the ordeal continued, all he could do was watch as the GPS went blank and the compass began to spin wildly, failing to make heads or tails of his heading. Fearing that the plane would crash, Connolly maintained a death grip on the stick. But soon the ordeal came to an end almost as quickly as it had begun and the weather cleared up. Strangely, the surroundings were different. The compass returned to normal, yet his GPS was no longer functional.

"Looks like I’m in the clear, but somehow the GPS fried. What the hell just happened?!" Connolly looked around, skies were clear again. "Okay! Okay…systems check, anything else non-functional?” He asked himself. He took a few deep breaths and removed his oxygen mask, the sweet feeling of air pumping his lungs as he tried to calm himself down. "A-Alright, the GPS is fried but I still have my stores management system and basic flight instruments in full working order. Gotta love that Russian Sukhoi quality, eh? The radar still works and the HUD works too." Connolly said before sighing out loud. “Maybe I should have gotten a Su-30 instead. At least I would have someone to talk to and not be alone.” He said as he mentally pinched himself. 

He looked out of the canopy to find himself near a coast somewhere. Connolly was in the ocean and now he somehow wound up back to the Floridan coast? Turning the aircraft slightly to the right, he moved his bearings to that he was going north. Well, at least north according to his bearing.

He flew in that direction for some time, watching his fuel go down. Connolly refrained from using his afterburner considering that he wouldn’t want to be flying a brick at that point. Fuel was rather precious even to a pilot such as himself. Every so often, he would check his radar or to his radio for any transmission but so far nothing. Daylight was starting to fall to the west. The night sky soon covered the air as the lone Su-35 traveled north, the moon starting to appear over the horizon. It would have been scenic were it not for the fact that he was lost in the middle of nowhere with no GPS.

* * *

What felt an eternity of just flying north, something spiked on the Irbis-E radar. When he went to check on it, all he could see was a… swarm, to put it on a lacking term. At least 8 ‘small’ size objects, probably the size of an EADS Barracuda. Drones out here? The feeling of finally seeing someone, anyone, brought hope to MS pilot as he throttles more, moving towards the location.

Then, as he crossed the ten kilometer range, at least three of the objects disappeared from radar. Disappeared? Switching over to the OLS-35 infrared search and track (IRST) system, Connolly could see that they were still 5 of the objects but one other which gave off strange readings. It looked like a… person. Suddenly he started to receive an audible warning from his radar. Something was targeting him. Turning the L175M Khibiny-M ECM on in an attempt to jam the enemy radar and scan the airspace for any potential threats. For all he knew, it could be someone toying with him.

As he watched the airspace, a trail of red lasers brush passed his Su-35. Banking hard to the left, he rolled the massive aircraft frame away from the potential enemy. He turned his back around to see something black with red hexagons and blue highlights shooting at him.

“Shit… I guess there’s no way out of this. Time to dance into the fire.” Connolly said as he started playing Slghthound on his phone. He pulled on the stick hard back as he moved the Flanker behind one of the enemies. Not wanting to waste his air-to-air missiles, Connolly switched the sights to the 30mm GSh-30-1 and lined up. A burst of 30mm HE-T and API-T rounds easily tore through the UAV looking object. Much to his surprise, the object bursted in a cloud of white, like snow almost.

Connolly performed a high yo-yo maneuver and got behind another one. Just the same as before, a burst of 30mm destroyed the target. He checked his radar again to check to see if there were anymore contacts, but they all vanished. At least 100 rounds of 30mm rounds remained in the wing root. He let out a sigh of relief, glad to get out of combat against the unknown foes.

Suddenly he got a knock on his glass canopy and Connolly’s blood ran cold. He turned to his left to see a girl… with no pants on. Even at night, he could perfectly see the brown short hair with ends hanging down. If he wasn’t so scared, he would describe it as soft. She wore a navy blue jacket with something attached to her legs. Wait, are those animal ears on her head? She was also carrying a massive gun, one that should be too heavy for someone of her stature. She couldn’t have been no more than 18 or so. Where did he die and got sent off to? Hell?

The girl seemed to point at him before pointing at herself. Did she want him to follow her? Gulping slightly that he has no other options, he gives her a thumbs up and the girl smiles in response. She moved herself in front of him as to guide him to a destination unknown. Where in the fuck did he died to? Was this punishment for something he did, a past life, his own existence in the universe?

After a few minutes of flying to the northeast, Connolly saw something along the ground. It was a runway, two sets of lights parallel to each other and about 400 meters. The girl in front of him dove down to the runway, slowing down before stopping at a hanger of some sort. Gulping slightly, Connolly dove down as well. He extended his landing gears and moved his flaps. He pitched his nose up and felt the feeling of the runway screeching against his rubber tires. His airbrake deploys as he tries his best to slow the jet down as best as he could. Soon, just entering the hanger, the Su-35 grinded to a halt. Connolly turned off the turbofan engines, the whining filling throughout the base. Well, if anyone was asleep, they would be wide-awake now.

Checking his sidearm was on his person, Connolly popped the canopy window up and the ladder down. He climbed down the metal and onto the ground, glad to be on some ground for a change. He turned to look to see the same girl with a surprise look on the face. The two didn’t know what to say. Before Connolly could say anything, a blur of something blonde connected right into him. Pain… PAIN flairs through his body, most particular his groin. He gasped as he fell to the ground. There was another girl, a blonde one cracking her knuckles as she glared down at him.

He could have sworn he heard the brown haired girl saying something English to her partner as Connolly fell to unconsciousness. What a way to enter, with a busted pair of balls.  
  
  
  



	2. Chapter 2: I'm what?!

Chapter 2: I’m what?!

* * *

??? 8:30 Hours

The morning light peers through the white curtains as a gentle breeze flows through an open window. Connolly groaned as he opened his eyes, blinded by the bright light of the morning sun. It takes a moment for the pilot to be adjusted to the light before he opened his hazel blue eyes. He moved his head slightly around as the sense of a dull pain emanates from his groin. Memories, as blurry as they were, flashed back to his mind as he groans in recoil.

Connolly could feel the soft mattress on his back as he could see that he was in an infirmary of some type. A rather basic setup if he has to say so. He shifted the blankets to see that he was still dressed in the olive drab flight suit, but something else was wrong… Was he this short? Not only that, his gear and sidearm was gone as well. After checking his leg pocket, he was glad to find his phone was still there. It seems that they didn’t know about it and left it there.

He raised his head up as he heard the sole door opening up to reveal a short girl with long blonde hair, usually tied into low twintails and a pair of flight goggles. She wore a green coat which looked like it was about two sizes extra on her and a long tan shirt that seemed to double as a skirt. She also wears a white scarf with a red stripe at the bottom, tucked into her coat. Just as before with the first girl from last night, she wore no pants. She was holding a tray of something fresh. Breakfast perhaps? When she saw him moving around, she smiled warmly.

“Hey, so you’re finally awake. Good morning to you.” She said as she came over to the bed and set down the tray on his lap. There were various dishes such as French toast, croissant with jam, and tea.

“Wuh… Where am I? Who are you?” He asked the girl as his own stomach growled. Blushing lightly in embarrassment, Connolly started to eat the breakfast laid out before him. It certainly was delicious and filling to eat.

“You’re in the 506th base near Dijon, Gallia. Uh… sorry about Marian… knocking you out there. Oh! I’m Carla Luksic. A pleasure to meet you, sir!” Carla said with a grin as she looked at him. “So, what do I call you?”

“Ah, I’m Raynard Connolly of Martinez Security.” Connolly said to the girl which only seemed to further make her grin wider before that faded away to be replaced with a look of confusion.

“Martinez Security? What’s that? A type of secret military branch?” Carla asked him as she pulled up a seat next to the bed. Connolly could only blink in surprise at her leaning close to the bed itself.

“Uh, I mean, you can call us private militaries that provide services to cli-”

“So you’re mercenaries?!” Carla interrupted him as she shot up from her seat.

“Um… sorta? I know the boss likes to use the term ‘privateers’ to describe us at least. I mean, I’m not going to deny and say that there weren’t private militaries that were more akin to actual mercenaries.” Connolly said as a sweat drop dripped down his head.

“Ohhhhhh, privateers huh? Well, that’s a nice term for it and that plane you flew in with is also interesting.” Carla said with a smile before shrugging and leaning back into her seat. “So, since we’re in the middle of getting to know one another, where are you from?”

“Oh me? Well, I’m from good ol’ Chicago. So how about you-” Another knock on the door interrupted Connolly before the door opening. Entering the room was a girl but she had an aura of command around her. Whereas Carla would have this calming feeling around her, this woman demanded to be respected. She wore a similar tan shirt but she had some type of leather jacket. Her hair was brown with light bangs hanging and the back tied in a ponytail. Her expression could be summed up as ‘I have experience’ with her sharp eyes.

“You’re awake, good. I am Wing Commander Genna Preddy and I wish to greet you to the 506th Joint Fighter Wing B-Unit. First, I would like to thank you for your assistance with Flight Lieutenant Jennifer DeBlanc last night. By her accounts, the Neuroi were much more arduous than first anticipated. By her report, you arrived in the nick of time.” Genna’s lips curl upwards slightly as a sign of gratitude. “However, considering that you are a personal from an unknown organization, we will have to detain you.”

“D-Detained? What, you mean that I’ll be sent off to a prison somewhere?” Connolly panickily said before Carla simply laughed at his panicking expression.

“Oh no, we’re not going to send you to a prison. You haven’t done anything wrong, but we don’t know anything about you or that aircraft you flew in with. You will be given a guard to watch your every move. You will not leave the base without permission or your escort. You’ll be refrained from your sidearm and you will be grounded. Do I make myself clear?” Geena said with a soft yet firm tone in her voice.

Connolly nodded his head quickly, fully understanding the situation he was in. “Uh, a question from me. What’s a Neuroi?”

“The Neuroi are humanity’s enemy and we are Witches. We have been at war against them for years. Gallia have recently been liberated and the 506th have been created to defend Gallia. Of course, there has been… disagreements within the 506th. As such, we are split into two units; A and B.” Geera explained to Connolly, Carla making a barfing noise, before turning to heading out of the door. “If you like, you can tour around the base with Carla before going to your aircraft.” Geera said before leaving the pair in the infirmary.

“Right, well, I would be happy to give you a tour around the place. I promise you, we have much more freedom than the A Unit! They’re nothing but a bunch of stuffy and arrogant aristocrats. We're a bunch of free birds, spreading our wings! You'll like it here. Um... sorry that you can't fly yourself." Carla said before standing up and heading towards the door before turning back at Connolly. “Oh and if you want to freshen yourself up, there’s the bathroom to your left. I’ll be waiting!” She waved at him before leaving him alone in the room.

Silence, a lost feeling for the Martinez Security pilot. Well, it wouldn’t do much good for him if he kept his 506th guide waiting up on him. Stepping out of the bed now, Connolly heads toward the bathroom and turns on the light. When his face was illuminated by the light, he gasped. Standing in the mirror was him… but as an 18 year old! His face paled as he inspected his own face, the feeling of a softer set of cheeks… From a 26 year old to an 18 year old. No wonder why he felt short, he was reverted back to when he was in his senior year of high school. This has to be a dream, even more so than before, and he gave himself a pinch on his cheek. Quickly yelping as the sense of dread washes over him. This is real for him… But even with this younger body, he somehow managed to take the punishment of the G’s. He shouldn’t be accepting this but here it was, he had somehow changed back while maintaining his endurance. He quickly washes his face with cold water and Connolly stepped out of the bathroom.

Just as she said, Carla was waiting for him outside of the infirmary with her arms behind her head. She turned to look at him as he exited the room and gave him a smile. “Hey, finally decided to get out of there huh? Well, come on and follow me.” She said with a bright smile on her face as she led him down the hallway. “So, this is the main barrack. It’s where the B-Unit. We have your standard accommodations, you know: bunks, a lounge area, the usual. So, if you follow me.” She said as she led Connolly to the outside.

Gentle plains etched for miles upon miles only occasional patches of trees to break line of sight. Again, it would be very scenic were it not for a certain pilot’s panic within his mind. He could see at least three hangers attached to the runway, another building with a ‘bell’-like tower, and finally a building right next to the main barrack. Speaking about the main barrack, it’s more ornate like a classical building with a maroon red roofing. Carla pointed at the building next to Witches’ barrack. “That’s the maintenance personnel, radar, and anti-air crews’ barracks. We’re quite a small unit but even we need personnel to check track of things. Unlike the A-Unit, we like to have a little more space than being held up in some castle.” She said with a mocking tone. She then pointed to the building with the bell tower.

“And that over there is the main HQ of the B-Unit. That’s where Geera spends most of her time if she’s not in the air. We would be coordinating with our ground forces there as well. And I’m sure that you can tell that they’re the hangers.” Carla said, shifting over to the left hanger from the center. “And that would be where we’re keeping your aircraft so let’s head over there.” She said as she led him to the hanger while having her hands in her pockets.

After knocking on the metallic door that would serve as the way for personnel to use, came _her_. Despite the quick flashes from last night, Connolly could still remember her angry face. Unlike Geera and Carla, she wore a similar navy blue jacket to the girl from last night, her brown eyes piercing through his very own soul. Whereas before she wore an indifferent look when she first opened the door, it quickly hardened like iron as she quickly spotted him behind Carla. Connolly couldn’t help but shiver at the rather imposing and downright intimidating girl.

“Flying Officer Luksic, good to see you. I see that you brought… our guest here as well.” The girl said with venom laced in her voice as she continued to glare at him.

“Yep, this is Raynard Connolly. Connolly, this is Flight Lieutenant Marian Carl. I’m sure that you have… met before?” Carla said with a nervous chuckle.

“Hmph, yes. Unfortunately I have. I’m sure that you are here to inspect your aircraft?” Connolly wordlessly nodded his head. Marian quickly pulled him to the side. “Now listen here fuckface, under our hospitality, I am not to harm you. But, if you are to screw up or put the lives of the B-Unit or anyone else, I will fucking end you. Do I make myself clear?” She said as she jabbed at his stomach.

“C-Crystal clear…” Connolly sheepishly said before Marian grinned. Not in a pleasant way, more akin to a predator catching their prey in their trap. She sidestepped to let the pair into the hanger. Connolly was the first to enter and there he could see his bird. The hangar itself was large enough to house the Su-35, the wingtips and the tip of the tails making it an almost tight squeeze. There, the full cache of missiles remained on their pylons. There the light grey body aircraft stood motionless, the presence in of itself seemingly radiating a sense of awe to Carla. Connolly stepped over to where the cockpit ladder was and climbed up, getting into the cockpit.

“Geez, this thing seems to be massive! Almost as big as a B-24 bomber!” Carla exclaimed loudly to him from her spot on the ground, looking up at the cockpit.

“Hmm… controls seem to be in working order, just don't seem to have any GPS… I’m amazed that this thing held up after that storm and whatever the fuck that was…” Connolly muttered as he heard someone climbing up the metal labber. Expecting it to be Carla or… Marian, Connolly quickly turned his head to say something only to be stopped once he saw who it was. To simply describe the girl would simply be, albeit cliché, beautiful. It was the same girl from last night, the same one that he rescued from those ‘Neuroi’. The girl seemed to catch his gaze and they paused to look at each other, mirroring from their first meeting. She quickly broke up the gaze before coughing lightly.

“O-Oh! H-Hi there, I’m Flight Lieutenant Jennifer DeBlanc. It’s, um, a pleasure to meet you! Sorry about Marian last night… I would have stopped her, but she was already over you before I could even explain it to her.” Jennifer sheepishly said as she rubbed the back of her head.

Connolly quickly brought his hand up and waved it. “Oh no, it’s fine! I can tell that she’s… protective of this unit. I can’t really fault her for something like that, even if she terrifies me. I’m Raynard Connolly by the way.” He said with a small smile.

Jennifer inspected him, looking over his shoulder as Connolly checked the instruments and the displays. A sense of silence washed over the pair as Marian and Carla continued to inspect the jet from the outside.

“Erm… if you don’t mind me asking, but what’s the name of this plane? I would take that this… beauty of an aircraft has some sort of name?” Jennifer peeped up, breaking the silence over the pair.

“Ah, well this plane is called the Sukhoi Su-35S. It’s a fighter with a top speed of 1,500 mph-”

“1,500 mph?! That’s impossible!” Marian holler at Connolly, glaring up at him as she overheard the capability of the fighter. “This thing looks too heavy and unstable to even come close to that speed. It looks more akin to a trashcan than a so-called ‘fighter’.”

“Oh come on, Marian. I think this thing can do something like that. Maybe you should give him a chance.” Carla said to the irated Marian. She merely scoffed at the motion.

“Sukhoi? Er… that sounds Orussian if I have to say so… Wait, Orussian? What are you doing with an Orussian plane?” Jennifer quickly asked the pilot, eyes widening as she asked him.

“Well… I’m sure that you can piece together that I’m not exactly from around here. Uhm… you see, I’m from… the future. At least 70 plus years if I have to guess.”

“70 years?! Oh tell me, do you have lasers? The Neuroi are still a threat and-” Jennifer quickly says before stopping herself as she realized where she put herself in.

“We don’t have Neuroi back where I came from, this is the first time I’d come across anything like that.” Connolly said to the brown haired girl. “And where I’m from Orussia is called Russia. They’re often joked that they make sub-standard but rugged stuff.” He said before patting the stick. “Like this old girl.” Added with a smile. “I wouldn’t trade her for anything else.” He let out a small groan as he grabbed the side of the cockpit and hoisted himself out of the aircraft. Jennifer moved herself down the ladder and onto the ground as Connolly soon joined with her.

“Well, I must say, you have impressive looking aircraft here even if I don’t fully understand the whole thing.” Carla said with a smile on her face.

“Hmph, I would happily challenge you to a race to see which is faster. Your flying trash can possibly can’t beat me.” Marian quickly added with a hand on her chest.

“...Is that something you can keep?” Connolly said with a small smirk on his face, already knowing who would be the victor to the race well in advance. Carla snickered in response as Jennifer lightly smiled.

Marian took this as good as she expected to. “Is that so!? Ha ha ha!” Marian said before laughing like a psychopath.

“Uh-huh, don't act like the victor already.” Connolly said before they all start to pool out of the hanger with Marian locking the hanger’s door behind her.

“Just so you don’t escape when you want to. I’ll be watching you, dumbass.”

Apparently, they have been inside of the hangar for the remainder of the whole day, the sun starting to set to the west. A sudden realization came over Connolly before he tsked.

“Ah… crap, looks like I don’t know where I’ll be sleeping at-”

“You can stay with us!” Carla said as she suddenly appeared before Connolly’s vision.

“ **What?** ” All three people said as they looked at the blonde haired girl, Marian and Jennifer’s faces starting to pale slightly.

“What? We have a spare room that I’m sure that no one is ever going to use. Besides Marian, you said it yourself, you want to keep an eye on him.” She said, smirking with her last word.

Marian’s eye twitched with annoyance as Connolly could have sworn he saw a blood vessel threatening to burst. “F-Fine… He can stay in our building. But as you said! It’s to keep an eye on him as for him to not escape. Yes, that’s it!” She said before pointing to a room on the far end of the long hallway.

“Your room at the end of the hall on the right. If I find out you did anything overnight, I’ll cut your balls and have them strung up. Got me?” Marian said before cracking her knuckles.

“Uh yeah sure. No escape, yada yada yada.” Connolly said before he entered the, his, room. The room itself was actually lavishly furnished. It seems that no expenses were spared for comfort for the Witches. The bed was at least a king size with soft sheets. He sighed as he sat down on the side of the bed, taking off his boots before laying down on the bed. Connolly stared at the ceiling, the thoughts of him being here forever kept plaguing his mind.

“I can’t get overwork over this… I need to sleep…” He said before closing his eyes. Sleep soon overtook him and dreams filled his head.


	3. Chapter 3: Chain Reaction

Chapter 3: Chain Reaction

February 25th, 1945 11:30 hours  
  


* * *

A few days following Connolly’s introduction to the 506th B-Unit was a rather boring experience for the pilot. Every day, he would spend most of the day in the hangar that housed his Flanker, checking its system, and basic maintenance since he doubt he could find anyone that would know how to run an 85 million dollar fighter jet. During this time of everyday maintenance, Connolly would be under the constant watch of Marian, Carla, or rarely Jennifer. They would often ask, or just stand in Marian’s case, about the Russian-made aircraft, its capabilities, etc. While he would have loved to actually show them, especially against Marian, but he was still barred from the aircraft for flight.   
  
  


“Righto, looks like that’s the end of today’s checkup. Oh how I wish I could fly again… I don’t mind the ground, it’s just the sky has a lot of freedom to it.” Connolly said as he hops down the ladder and onto the concrete floor with Carla waiting for him, a grin on her face.  
  
  


“Well, I’m sure that we can put a good word in for Geena, you haven’t done anything that would warrant your arrestment. But I heard that someone from the A-Unit would be coming here to inspect you and see if you are worth keeping around. Frankly, I think you’re cool enough to stay around.” Carla said as she started to walk alongside him as they exited the hangar. 

  
  


“Oh really? Well, that’s just wonderful. Someone else would be judging me before sending my sentence…” Connolly said with a groan as he rubbed the side of his head as they made their way towards the control tower of the B-Unit’s base.  
  
  


Carla simply laughs at his rather hopeless statement as she patted Connolly’s back. “Oh please, you’re doing fine by my book. Besides, they technically have no jurisdiction down here. If anything, it would be to see if you are to be taken to General Galland since you are under our rules and whatnot.” She explained before shrugging her shoulders before entering the building.  
  
  


Sitting in a seat at an ornate maple desk with sunlight pouring into the office is Geena. She seems to be writing something on a piece of paper before muttering something low to her breath. “Hmm… five letters across that starts with ‘b’…” She said before she raised her head at the pair as they entered her office and she put down the paper before addressing them. “Oh, Connolly and Carla, it’s good to see you both here. We have received word that a Witch from the A-Unit is currently on her way here.”  
  
  


“Which one of those stuck up Nobles are coming here to check on Raynard? I mean, they would be pretty bold to come here after all.” Carla said before sticking her tongue out and making a raspberry sound.   
  
  


“Well, according to Major Grunne, it’ll be Pilot Officer Bergendal. She should be arriving around 02:45.” Geena said before turning to look at Connolly. “And you should do well to watch her. She’s been known to… prank others around her.”

  
  


Carla’s eyes seemingly brighten like a star as she hears the news. She put her hands in her pocket as her smile grew into a wide grin, the look reminding Connolly of the Joker. “Oh ho? So, Isabelle is coming here. I need to sharpen my… response against her. She got me the last time, something I wish not to repeat again.”  
  
  


Connolly could feel a drop of sweat racing down the side of his head as Carla said that, a wave of uneasiness piling inside of his stomach. He couldn’t help but glance over to Geena for some form of advice, but the Wing Commander could only look at him with an impeccable poker face.   
  
  


“Oh and one more thing.” Geena said, going into her desk drawer to produce a piece of paper and handing it to Carla. “Give this to Marian. We received word that she’ll be given an XP-51G Striker Unit within the week.”   
Carla gave a lazy salute before placing the note in her pocket. “Sure thing, Geena. I’ll make sure to give this to her when I see her.”   
  
  


“Good, well that’ll be all. You’re both dismissed.” Geena said before going back to the paper from earlier, a confused look washing over her face once again. “B… B… What on earth could it be?”  
  
  


As Carla and Connolly exit the building, they start to make their way towards the Witches’ barracks. Connolly took a glance at the blonde girl walking besides him. He couldn’t help but notice a small upturn at the corner of her mouth as she saw Marian in the distance.   
  
  


“So… Thanks again, for letting me at least have access to your collection of books, Carla. I mean, it would be a rather long few days without any form of, well, doing anything. Sure I got my fighter to look after, but you can only do so much on the ground and with one person to do.” Connolly said.   
  
  


“Oh it’s fine. I can understand the boredom of not being able to do anything. Not to your level, of course. Still, be awake when Bergendal gets here, I rather not use all my tricks to get you out of bed.” She said with a light teasing tone to the pilot.   
  
  


“Uh… yeah sure. I-I’ll keep that in mind.” Connolly says before entering his room, heading towards his bed and laying down on it. It’s been a long day for the pilot as he lay on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. He digs into his pocket to get his phone. Despite having the charger to the mobile device, he’s been on the fence about using it, occasionally using it every now and then. All without the guise of the B-Unit. He couldn’t even fathom the explanation about the 70+ years of technological advancements. Hell, would they even _know_ what that meant?   
  
  


The clock on the screen reads ‘12:30’. He had at least another two hours before this ‘Flight Officer Bergendal’ arrived. He figured that he could take a nap for an hour, to at least feel relaxed and at his peak for when his judge and jury get here. Setting an alarm to be let out in an hour, he settled into the bed.   
  
  
  
Alarm. A wailing siren alarm began to blare throughout the base. The noise akin to a bomb raid from WW2 documentaries that he used to watch. 

  
  


Connolly groans as he opens his eyes, a sense of familiarity coming back to the pilot. It wasn’t the first time he went through a base siren. He got out of the bed and looked out the window. He could see various men running across the base, heading towards their post, barking orders out to others. 

  
  


Wanting to investigate, the Witches were his best bet, Connolly heads out of the barracks and heads over to the control building, the most likely that the B-Unit was in. That was until he saw Jennifer taking off in that Striker Unit into the blue sky. From his time at this base, Connolly learned that Jennifer, being a Night Witch, is often exempt from day duties as she would be tired from the night patrol. If even she was being deployed, it must be really serious.

  
  


Most men barely gave him as they ran throughout the base’s grounds. Checking to see if anyone would stop him, Connolly opened the door and he could see shouting coming from a large open room past Geena’s office. 

  
  


“Four, no, five large Neuroi detected by Neufchâteau!”

  
  


“Where are they all coming from?!”

  
  


“Is this a counterattack?!”

  
  


Connolly peeked his head around the door, seeing various radar and communications equipment. Men glued to the screens as they relay orders to one another. It was something he was amazed about, even among the rather less technological side, to see the commitment of these men.

  
  


Still, by all accounts, it sounded like they had it in the bag. At the very least, that’s what it originally sounded like. His head perked up as he heard someone shouted. “Lieutenant Carl has been hit, she’s still in the air!”

  
  


“Do we know when the A-Unit will get there?!”

  
  


“Not for another 30 minutes!”

  
  


“They won’t last for another 10!”

  
  


Marian has been hit? Despite Connoly’s reservations about the aggressive Witch, he couldn't help but feel that he has the power to change that, to help them. Despite having been barred to the ground, he wants to help them. Right here and right now.

  
  


Connolly stepped around the corner, appearing at the doorway to the room. “I can get there within 5 minutes.” He said as he stared at the group of men. “Give me the keys to the hangar.”

  
  


They stopped and looked at him, a moment of silence falling over the room only to be interrupted by the beeps from the radar.

  
  


“You? Er… we were explicitly told to not let you have access to your aircraft.” One said in a chair.

  
  


“Plus, they have it in the bag themselves.” Another said by the radar.

  
  


“But you said it yourself. One is already hit and their reinforcements are 30 minutes away. I can get there in 3-5 minutes.” Connolly countered, taking a step forward.

  
  


“Flight Officer Luksic is almost out of ammo!”

  
  


Connolly looked at the man that shouted that before turning back to the group. “Please, let me help them.”

  
  


The Liberion soldiers look at each other, silently debating whether or not to allow this.

  
  


“Sorry, but orders are orders. I would rather not deal with Major Geena and Lieutenant. Go back to your room until the situation has been resolved.” One said as they all went back to being glued to their stations.

  
  


Connolly’s hands balled into a fist. How can these men not see that they need help now? They’re not going to last long if these men don’t do anything. His gaze lowered to the ground before he moved them towards a man in the room nearest to him. 

  
  


He had a gun in a quick draw holster. Decisions began to weigh on the pilot as he tried to rationalize his decision. If he does for the gun, there’s no way to know what’s going to happen next. Desperate time calls for desperate measure. 

  
  


Then, like a viper attacking their prey, Connolly struck. He looped his left arm around the man’s neck, his leg bending the soldier's leg. His other hand reached down to grab the gun and had it point at his prisoner’s head. 

  
  


His prisoner lets out a cry as all turn around to look at him, eyes widening. One soldier grabs his own gun to point it at him.

  
  


“Hey, stop right there!” He shouted at Connolly.

  
  


“You know that I can’t do that. Those Witches aren’t going to be able to last for very long.” Connolly said before pressing the gun barrel against his prisoner’s side. “Listen, I’m not going to hurt any of you. On that you have my word.” 

  
  


The room fell to silence before one of the radio operators turned to look at him. “What do you want?”

  
  


“What?! Are you mad?!”

  
  


“I need my gun, my gear, and a key to the hangar. That’s all I need.” Connolly said before a soldier threw a key at him. 

  
  


“Your gear is in a locker in that hanger. Just let him go.” 

  
“Where’s Neufchâteau?   
  


“About 77 miles up north from the base.”

  
  


Connolly accepted the key, removing his hold over his capture. He tossed the gun back to its original owner and sprinted out of the building, too quick for them to retaliate against him. He heard shouting in his direction as he ran across the base’s grounds.

  
  


When Connolly reached the hangar’s door, he used the key and went inside. There she was, in all of her glory. After searching around for a few minutes, he found the locker that housed his gear. After slipping on the live vest and his gun, Connolly found it. The Cobra HMDs helmet. It was from Saab Gripen line, but when it works when it comes to the Su-35. In fact, it seems to enhance the Russian workhorse. Slipping on the helmet, Connolly rushes over to the hangar’s doors and, struggling, pushes the massive stutters open. Clear skies with little wind, a perfect day for an op.

  
  


Climbing up the metal ladder up to the cockpit, Connolly straps into the seat. Closing the canopy, he began the startup sequence of the engines. Soft whirring turned into something akin to a siren wailing fills the base and its surrounding area. Applying a gentle thrust to get out of the hangar, Connolly could see various men stopping in their tracks to look at the mysterious aircraft, the one with no propeller. Out of force of habit, Connolly pre-flight checked the aircraft. The rudders, ailerons, radar, and weapons. Once each and every one has been checked, he starts to apply thrust and move his flaps for takeoff. The 35 ton aircraft frame began to move down the runway, getting faster and faster.  
  
  
Just before the runway ended, the Su-35 took off from the runway, climbing upwards into the sky. The looks on the men on the ground as they watch the gray aircraft disappear into the blue would be rather funny.   
  
  
“So, according to the guy, Neufchâteau is about 77 miles to the northeast. If I 1200 mph, I can get there in 3 minutes… But if I do, then people will know about this… To hell with it. The B-Unit are in trouble and they need my help.” Connolly said before moving the Flanker to the northeast of the base and starting to apply more thrust.

450… 550… 650… 767! As the Flanker crosses the sound barrier, a cone of condensed water vapors appear around near the tail end of the jet followed by a loud boom in its wake. But it wasn’t over yet. 870… 970… 1170… 1200! The feeling of the G-force starting to weigh on Connolly’s young body, but it didn’t matter.

  
If a Gallian were to look up, they would have a seen a small dot moving at ridiculous speed followed by a loud boom that accompanied with it. Glasses shatter in the Flanker-E’s wake, but the pilot didn’t care. Only the thought of bringing back the B-Unit, and the sole A-Unit Witch, back to the base safely.   
  
  


About 30 miles out of Neufchâteau, radar picked up at least three large objects, these must be the Nueroi. Wanting to get the first strike out, Connolly switched the hud over to four RVV-AE AAM and locked onto the three. The loud buzzer indicates that he has locked on and pressed the weapon release button on his stick. The four 12 feet long missiles detach from their pylons at the center of the Su-35 before their solid fuel propellant ignites, propelling the missiles at speeds of mach 4. The missiles went forth and sought their targets.   
  
  


Now he only had four R-74 and four RVV-AE missiles left along with 100 rounds of 30mm rounds. Connolly could only hope that this engagement won’t last forever.  
  
  


Perhaps First Flight from AC5 will go along with this engagement. 

  
  


“Fuck! I'm almost out of ammo!” Marian shouted as smoke bellowed out of her right Grumma F4F-4. Her M1919A6’s belt ran low with each firing.   
  
  


The Neuroi, this time around, were akin to giant manta rays. Their flat and somewhat elegant look contrasts with the open Gallian sky. Red lasers fired out of their red spots on the dorsal and ventral areas against the Witches who could only lightly retaliate against them.   
  
  


Isabelle, since she was only armed with a FN Hi-Power, could only provide passive support by popping shields in front at the right time, blocking the red lasers basting against her shield. “Geez, I hope my guys get here soon. We’re not going to last long!”  
  
  


“Your guys?! We can manage just fine without them!” Marian shouted back at the orange hair girl.   
  
  


“Really? ‘Cause that hole in your Striker is really helping you there!” Isebelle’s quick wit answered in return.   
  
  


“Oh come on you two! Now isn’t the time to be fighting! We just need to hold out for a little bit longer!” Jennifer said, her 20mm Hispano cannon firing against the Neuroi. “Damn… even I’m running low over here.”  
  
  


“All of this because of that male pilot- Wait, what’s that?!”   
  
  


Marian shouted as the B-Unit, and Isebelle, looked to their left to see four small ‘darts’ in the air with a trail of white smoke behind them. They were fast, really fast. They streaked through the air like fish of the sea. Then, two veered off from the pack as they flew towards the two Neuroi and the other two moved against the last one. Simultaneous explosions were triggered as the rockets hit against the three Neuroi, causing one of the manta to explode in a plum of white particles. The other two had exposed areas, marking where their cores sat.  
  
  


“W-What was that?” Jennifer hesitantly asked before Geena snapped her head towards where the darts had come from.  
  
  


“I see it! It’s… it’s Connolly. How did he get into the air?” Geena wondered to herself.   
  
  


They could see the silhouette of the Su-35 Flanker to the distance as it moved closer to them. However they soon realized that it was going fast… Really fast. The aircraft suddenly moved past them followed by a massive boom that nearly blew out their ears. They shout as they covered their ears, ringing proliferating throughout them.   
  
  


“That idiot! What the fuck is he thinking?! Blowing our ears out like that!” Marian cursed against the Martinez pilot.  
  
  


“W-Wait, look! Those rockets exposed the cores!” Carla pointed at the sizable holes in the Neuroi, exposing their red cores.  
  
  


“Right, whether or not he came here to help, it doesn’t matter. We have a clear shot at their core. Let’s focus on the one to the right.” Geena ordered at her unit.  
  
  


“W-What about the other one?” Jennifer asked as they started to move towards their target.  
  


“I think we can leave that one up to him.”   
  
  


Moving past the group of Witches, Connolly moves towards the one to the left. Something was glowing a bright red, even at this distance. Perhaps it was a weakspot for the Neuroi? Considering that the ones that he fought earlier were very much smaller compared to these things, it could be literally anything, but he needed to try at the very least.   
  
  


Lining up the pipper to the red spot, Connolly lets out a burst of the 30mm autocannon at the target. Rounds landed against the spot before one lucky round pierced the core, resulting in the massive Neuroi to instantly turn into a shower of white.  
  
  


Just as he turned to face the other Neuroi, it too disappeared in a puff of white, the B-Unit, and their escortee, flying in the air. They turned to stare at him as he maintained at least 3km distance from them, not wanting the Witches to be hit by his jet-wash. Even though Connolly was this far away, he could see that Marian was fuming at her spot, eying his jet with some form of envy or hate.   
  
  


The Witches then moved southwest, towards their base with their escortee in tow. Connolly decided to trail them. It’s not like there’s anywhere to go, especially now that he used up a lot of his fuel on his afterburner to get there. Slowing the jet back down to 400 mph, he easily kept up with the Witches as they limped back to their back with Marian’s Striker Unit producing smoke as they traveled.   
  
  


After 12 minutes of constant flying, they all return to the B-Unit’s base. The Witches went down first, landing at the center hangar with various men pooling from the area to inspect them. Now, it was Connolly’s turn.   
  
  


Raising his nose up and slowing down, he eased the throttle more and more and the altimeter grew ever more closer to the ground itself. The sounds of screeching tires landing on the concrete runway before slowing down to a halt. Since there were a group of people in front of the hangars, Connolly couldn’t get into one of the hangars and so he slowed the Flanker down until he was at the end of the runway.   
  
  


Powering down the engines, he gulped slightly as he could see the four B-Unit Witches and the A-Unit Witch, an orange haired girl wearing some type of overall jacket with a flat cap, moved against the crowd as they stared at the jet before them. Extending the ladder down, Connolly opened the canopy and climbed down.   
  
  


Silence permeates throughout the air as they stare at Connolly, a sense of deja-vu washing over the pilot as he takes off his helmet. “So… I suppose I owe you an explanation?” 


	4. Chapter 4: Consequences

Chapter 4: Consequences   
  


2:30 Hours  


* * *

Sitting on a rather comfortable wooden chair in a well-lit room, Connolly stared at Geena, who stared back in return. Her near emotionless poker face betrayed no emotion, but her eyes. They often say that the eyes are the window to the soul, but her eyes were filled with something that he couldn’t pin down. Distrust? Gratitude? He simply doesn’t know.    
  
  
“So… Reynard Connolly. You, despite my direct orders, launched your fighter. Not only that, I also learn about your ‘convicining’ from the ground crew. You defy direct orders, hold up a man at gunpoint, and breach a secure location. While in a different unit, you would have been tied up, beaten, and probably executed, me and the other Witches are grateful for your rescue. You’re quite lucky that this is the B-Unit and that our ground crew are from Liberion. If you had done that to the A-Unit, there would be a greater sense of punishment.” Her voice conveys a sense of disappointment to the pilot.    
  
  
“...Of course, Commander Preddy. I’m sorry that I acted like that. But you must know and understand that I couldn’t just simply sit on the sidelines. I did get there in 3 minutes.” Connolly said with a light smirk. “Besides, from the chatter on the radio, it really didn’t sound like you guys were going to survive for long. Sorry about my lack of knowledge about you Witches, but you know that I couldn’t just watch you guys die. Especially when we just met a few days ago.”   
  
  
Geena’s lips slightly curl into a smile. “Well, it’s nice to know that at least your heart is in the right place. However... “ Her demeanor changed drastically, looking at Connolly straight in the face. “Because of your actions, reports from here to Neufchâteau. Booms and shattering of glasses are all over the place. You are lucky that the Gallian Intelligence Department hasn't been here as most could be chalked up to Neuroi activities.” She said as she lightly leaned onto the table. “They are the people you don’t want to mess around with.”    
  
  
Connolly slowly nods his head, understanding his mistake for earlier. While it was something that he didn’t exactly think about due to the heat of the moment, the realization that he could very much change the history of this world dawned on him. Nations would race after him to glimpse of the new future tech that he has. “Y-Yes… I understand, Preddy.”    
  
  
“Good, glad to hear about it. Now onto the original purpose of this meeting. Pilot Officer Bergendal, you may enter.” She called out as the door opened to reveal Isabelle Bergendal entering the room. She eyed him up, wearing a very similar poker face. She inspects him from chest to head.    
  
  
“So, let’s get to know one of another eh?”    
  
  
Something told Connolly that he’s going to be here for a while.    


* * *

  
  
“Hey, Marian! I finally found the canopy controls!”   
  
  
Carla shouted from the side of the Flanker-E as the canopy glass rose up to reveal the interior of the fighter jet. Carla happily jumped into the cockpit, awing at the futuristic console and control panel before her.   
  
  
“Luksic, you’re not supposed to play inside of it. We are here to gather more about this aircraft. We’re both lucky that we’d watch his every move so we know how to open up this thing.” Marian mutters before looking up the grey and blue trimmed aircraft. She felt… powerless against it. When Connolly appeared to rescue them from the jaws of defeat, he arrived with such speed and force. Marian was a natural-born speed freak, in the same vein as the 501st Flight Lieutenant Yeager. It was only natural that she felt threatened by the appearance of something leagues above against her. Perhaps with her XP-51G Striker Unit coming within the week, she could challenge him in a race.    
  
  
Jennifer stood there next to Marian as she too stared up at the jet. For her, she felt some form of gratitude coming from it as well as to the pilot. Twice in a row Connolly has saved them from the Neuroi. Even with the somewhat limited amount of contact they shared, Jennifer couldn’t help but feel enamored with the jet and its pilot.    
  
  
“Well, at least we could say thanks to him for saving our butts.” Carla muttered from her spot in the seat.    
  
  
“Saying thanks to him?! There’s no way in hell I’m saying ‘thank you’ to that fucker!” Marian shouted back in retailization.    
  
  


“...Yet I don’t see you holding any records with that Wildcat.” Carla countered. “And need I remind you that you’re the one that rushed ahead more than any of us?”   
  
  
Marian blushed in embarrassment. “S-Shut up, Luksic. At least I had more ammo by the end.”   
  
  
“Yeah, whatever…” Carla muttered before something metallic brushed against her leg near the side of the К-36D-5 seat. When she reached down to inspect the object.    
  
  
When she grabbed it, she pulled it out to reveal a metal box 16 x 14 x 3.5-inch in dimension. Opening it up reveals a rather strange looking weapon. It had a black, almost plastic like, appearance. It had a short barrel, a large magazine, something that looked like a short scope on the top on some type of rails, and few spare magazines. Not only that, there were also some inscriptions on the side. Next to the rifle, sat a knife. The 5” black blade had a sawteeth looking design to it, bound to a natural leather holster and handle.   
  
  
“IWI Galil ACE 31, caliber 7.62X39R… Sweet looking knife too. Huh, hey Marian. Don’t you have his sidearm as well?” Carla asked as she came climbing out of the jet, placing the rifle and knife on a side table near the jet.   
  
  
“Huh? Oh yeah, I got it right here.” Marian said before producing the sidearm in question from her pocket and set it down next to the rifle.    
  
  
The pistol itself looks like a high tech version of the FN Hi-Power. The sleek stainless steel slide contrasts to the black and brown two-tone grip. The end of the barrel has an extended barrel with a screw. Underneath the barrel at the front was some device that produced a red dot whenever she gripped the pistol. Near the chamber had the words ‘HK USP .45 Auto’ and on the slide had the words ‘Silver Ghost’ on it. Another detail is a small gold medallion on the grip which depicts a skull clutching a knife in its mouth.    
  
  
“Hmm...looks very custom-like.” Jennifer said as she lightly traced a hand on the groves on the pistol, feeling the polymer wood like finish.    
  
  
“Yeah…but it also uses the .45 ACP as well?” Carla said as she grabbed the gun to find a mag release. Before long, she managed to find it and pop the magazine out. Sure enough, it uses .45 ACP in a 12 round capacity.    
  
  
“You know, I wouldn’t mind taking this with me. I do need something to replace my M1917 revolvers.” Carla said as she went forward to take the Silver Ghost off of the table, before being stopped by Jennifer who grabbed her hand before she could touch the gun.   
  
  
“N-Now hold on. H-He is under our care. We don’t steal from people that are under our care.” Jennifer said.    
  
  
“Oh ho? Defending him now are you?” Carla teased as she put her hand down.    
  
  
Jennifer quickly blush at the brashness of her actions, releasing her hold on Carla’s arm. Her head hangs low as she looks away from Carla and Marian.    
  
  
Carla laughs as she pats Jennifer on the shoulder blade. “Oh relax, Jenny! I’m only messing with ya! Besides.” She said before leaning into Jennifer’s ear. “I know that you’re thinking about Connolly. I think you like him~”   
  


  
Jennifer’s blush nearly tripled to the same red as the red star on the Orussian Air Force emblem. “M-Me? Liking a m-male? Oh, d-don’t be so presumptuous! T-There’s nothing b-between us.” She stuttered as she tried to hide her blushing face from Carla. “I-I only care that he saved us twice now. The l-least we could do is show s-some respect to h-him.”   
  
  
Marian scoffed at the notion. “Show respect? To him? That sonofabitch took one of our men hostage just to take off. If you want to show respect, that isn’t something you do. Now, if you want me to respect him, you need to do it right.”    
  
  
Jennifer’s brow frowned as she looked at Marian while Carla laid back with arms behind her head. “Well… fine. Let’s just finish the report and inventory of Connolly’s stuff.”    
  
  
Her gaze shifted to another object of interest. It was recovered from Connolly’s flight suit following his detainment after returning onto the ground. On the table next to the rifle was something small. From Jennifer’s guess, it was a 67.3 x 138.4 x 7.3mm rectangle with a polish glass on it. She could even see her reflection in the glass-like surface. Wanting to investigate it further, Jennifer picked up the object only for the glass to suddenly light up. Letting out a squeak of surprise, she dropped it on the table. The light went off and it returned to its previous, stilled form.    
  
  
“What was that?” Carla asked as she popped up next to Jennifer, inspecting the object with her. Again, she picked it up, noting how it was a little bit big for her hand to handle without using both of her hands. Again, the glass lights up and the two are introduced to a still image of a sundown overlooking a forest. What surprised the duo was that they could actually see the colors of it, unlike the cameras that everyone uses.    
  
  
They noticed how there’s a light indent at the base of the object. Pressing it reveals that the image went blurred as a new cast of words enter the Witches’ vision. It was a ten number pad with a four digit code.    
  
  
“‘Touch ID or Enter Passcode’? What on earth could that mean?” Carla exasperatedly said before her finger going up to a number and pressing it. Surprisingly, a dot on the top filled up with white. Pressing the number three more times, the object vibrates and the dots disappear.    
  
  
“Hmm… looks like we need to find the correct set of numbers to look further into it. But what could it mean?” Jenny said with a pondering thought before Marian suddenly appeared next of them.   
  
  
“Here let me see it.” She said before grabbing the object out of Carla’s hand and having her own spin of investigating it. Turning it over reveals nothing much of interest but there was a logo of something in silver; an apple with a leaf over it. Was it a brand of some sort? However, Marian decided that it’s more important to figure out the passcode to it.    
  
  
After all, it must be a big secret if there’s a passcode to the device.   
  
  
Of course, that was thirty minutes ago. And Marian was starting to get furious at the device in her hand. Whenever she, or another Witch, tried a combination, it would vibrate and restart their whole process again. Twice it was in ‘Lockout’ where they couldn’t do anything to it.    
  
  


Marian growled as she dropped it on the table. “Ugh! This is hopeless! I’m about this close on throwing this fucking thing against the wall!” She said as she grabbed her head in frustration.    
  
  
Jennifer and Carla could feel a sweat drop trickling down their head as they could see Marian getting mad, a sign of something bad to come.    
  
  
“Uh...maybe we should just leave it, you know? After all, I don’t think we’re going to figure it out.” Jennifer suggests as she rests a hand on Marian’s shoulder.   
  
  
The blonde Witch sighs before agreeing to the brown-hair girl. “Fine, but that fucker better get here soon or I’m going to knock his teeth out.”   


* * *

  
  
Connolly sighs in exhaustion as he lay down the basics of himself, his fighter, his employment, and what he knew on hand. Of course, he kept at least some things about his world. It’s clear that there are some analogies between countries from here and back home. Gallia to France, Liberion to the US. Yet despite that, everything looked around to be from the 1940s. Analogous to… WW2. Out of a sense of respect to the Witches, as well as other soldiers from around the globe, he would refuse to mention anything about the Second World War. After all, this world seems to be working together far better than his own world throughout recent memory.    
  
  
“So, is there anything else you like to know about me?” He asked the pair, a bit tired from the long winded explanation to the Liberion and the Belgican.    
  
  
“Hmm… nope. I believe I have enough to report to Major Grunne. However, due to the damages I received, I’ll be stuck on this base for a little while longer. I’m sure that there’ll be more time to better know more about you, Mr. Connolly.” Isabelle said with a slight smirk on her face.   
  
  
Geena could quickly sense the shift in tone in Isabelle’s tone as she leaned down to quietly whisper in Connolly’s ear. “Watch out for her. She’s in the same vein as Carla when it comes to pranks, perhaps moreso.”    
  
  
Connolly could only nod in silence as he watched the orange haired Witch exit the room, seemingly going off to do her own thing somewhere else on the base.    
  
  
“Well… I suppose I should say thanks for at least hearing me out. Better than being locked up, especially after my stunts.” Connolly said while rubbing the back of his head.    
  
  
“Hm, it’s no problem at all. Now, head to the hangar where your aircraft is at. The rest of the B-Unit is taking inventory however I fear that they may not know everything. Carla in particular…” Geena said as she started to follow him out of the room. “Anyway, at least head down there before she does something stupid.”   
  
  
“Huh? Oh, uh, sure. That’s no problem.”    
  
  
Connolly said as they exited the room, heading towards the hangar. Geena follows him as they make their way across the base’s ground. A few ground personnel eyeball him as the duo move on the concrete ground. Connolly hangs his head low, knowing that he isn’t exactly the most well-liked individual on base. He suppose that it’s only the Witches standing in the way on a lynching mob. 

  
  


Once the two have entered the hangar, they can see the other Witches loitering about the spacious room, inspecting a table near the landing gear of the Flanker-E. From his spot, Connolly could see that they found his Galil ‘Bailout’ rifle that all Martienz personnel issued to their aircraft. On the side, he finds his Silver Ghost there, the slide open.   
  
  
Oh and Marian was fiddling with his phone, getting mad with each and every passing second. Even from his spot feet away from her, Connolly can just feel the menacing aura around her. The other Witches of the B-Unit stopped with what they were doing and turned to look at them. He could certainly feel a shift in the air in the hangar. Looking to his right, he could see Geena sighing while clutching the side of her head.    
  
  
“You three… What did I say about messing around with things you don’t understand? You were supposed to take inventory and notes of the objects, not having a fit because you’re getting frustrated.” Geena said with a stern tone, like a parent disciplining their troubled child. An apt description.   
  
  
“Yeah, but Geena!” Carla said, hopping up from her seat and grabbing his phone in her hand. “We’re close to cracking this thing’s secret and we’ll be able to see for what Connolly really is!”    
  
  
“...And yet the easiest method is to simply ask for permission.” Geena said before breaking her pokerface to sigh, turning to Connolly and nodding to him. “Now, please put the device down on the table and ask for permission. It is, after all, his personal stuff. You wouldn’t like it if someone invades your private stuff.”    
  
  
Carla lets out an exaggerated sigh. “Fine fine. Fly boy, catch!” She said before tossing the sleek phone at Connolly.    
  
  
It was a good thing that Connolly always had a good catch with thrown objects or else the, quite literally, irreplaceable $400 dollar phone. Sighing in relief that some form of his personal belongings was returned to him, Connolly’s eye twitched once he turned on his phone. He found that not only was his phone was on 24% battery left, it was also stuck in a two-hour lockout.    
  
  
“Hm? Hey, Carla? How long have you three been trying to get on this?”    
  
  
“Er...about 40. Maybe 50 minutes now. Why?” She asked, head tilting to the side.    
  
  
“It’s just part of the security feature on it. And since you’ve been trying this for 50 minutes, I’m stuck on a two hour lockout.” Connolly explained, sighing before sitting in a random seat.   
  
  
“Oh… well uh… At least you can spend more time talking to us right?” Carla slowly chuckles while rubbing the back of her head.    
  
  
Connolly sighs. “I guess so. What do you want to know?”   
  
  
“Where are you from?” Jennifer asks, leaning on the table to look at him.   
  
  
“I’m from Chicago, Illinois. Spent most of my life there until I was around… 18 or so.” Connolly began his tale. “Around that time, I was in college to be a mechanical engineer when I was offered a tuition benefit from the Air Force. I, of course, took up for that offer and joined the Air Force when I was around 20…”    
  
  
“20? Now hold up there, bucko. But from the way that you look, you don’t look like you’re much older than Geena.” Marian interrupts while casting him a look of accusation on her face.   
  
  
Connolly shrugs. “I’m not sure about that myself. It just seems to be a side-effect from my arrival here, I think.”    
  
  
“Ohhhhh… So what happened afterwards? How did you go from military to Martinez Security?” Carla asks, wanting to get back to the story.    
  
  
“Well, after three years of being in with the Air Force. There was a… plague that occured. It spread fast and far. It was, to put it mildly, a very troubling time. I went home to keep an eye on my family. Then, after a year of it ravaging the world, a cure was found. Of course, when I went back to the Air Force, to get my wings back, they declined it. They’ve started to begin a program to use automated weapon systems. Seek a target on the other side of the world. It’s pretty impressive, but I got the boot. ‘Decreasing the need for human pilots’ they said.”    
  
  
Connolly sighs before continuing. “And it was around when Martinez Security started to build up and be employed by the UN. When I found out that they were looking for pilots, I only cared about getting my wings back. Sure, the idea of an increased paycheck seems appealing, but I really just want to fly in the dark blue sky once again.” He chuckled for a bit. “When I first started out, I was flying an old F-5E Tiger. It was a little fighter, smaller than the Su-35 before you. You would think after a plague that brought the world to a standstill would unite it, but instead it didn’t. Chaos emerged. A lot of separatists throughout the world emerged. And quite a lot of them were packing heat.”    
  
  
“W-Wait. Y-You mean to tell us that y-you’ve been fighting against humans in your world?” Jenny fearfully asks, grasping her right arm behind her back as she stares at him.    
  
  
“We don’t have the Neuroi to bring us together. When you don’t have a great threat that threatens your entire way of life, people would fill that void instead. It’s something I do have to commend you Witches and your world. You seem to bring unity closer than my world for the past 70 years.” Connolly said with a chuckle.   
  
  
“Anyway, I flew with MS for two years, gaining reputation and money. During a deployment to Southern Poland, I gained the nickname of ‘Grey Sokol’ since some describe my movements like a bird that’s ever so gracefully flying through the air. And that’s around when I got old Falchion here. Then, we were going to have a joint exercise with the USAF in the Bermuda Triangle when, well, I got sent here.” Connolly concluded with his tale.   
  


The Witches stared at the 18 year old before them. Here he was, from a world that’s ravaged by conflicts against humans, a thought that they couldn’t even comprehend. Yet at the same time, Carla and Jenny in particular, they couldn’t help but feel somewhat sympathetic to him. Here was a person that simply wanted to fly under the blue sky, doesn’t matter if he was getting paid or not. Just the idea of him having his wings back. Now they understand why Connolly was quick to react, to assist with them. Even Marian, who’s been a hardass to him ever since they first met, felt a ping of sadness in her chest.    
  


“Well, Connolly. Despite your actions earlier, we appreciate it. I understand if you don’t want to fight anymore.” Geena responded, resting a hand on the pilot’s shoulder.   
  
  
“Yeah, this doesn’t have to be your fight-”   
  
  
“But I want to fight though!” Connolly said, cutting off Marian’s words. “I...I’ll be honest with you. Fighting is all I know about. I’m sure that I can manage, but fighting for a worthy cause? How can I not accept that? Besides, I already save you Witches twice now. I think I’m thoroughly in your conflict now.” He said with a chuckle.   
  
  
Geena went silent for a moment. The tactician's brain thinking about how to approach this. “How about this, Connolly? You can be an unofficial member of the B-Unit. You’ll be able to be a part of the unit and you don’t have to worry about the military branch getting in the way.” Her hand outstretched for a handshake.    
  
  
Carla cheered while Jenny smiled. Even Marian gave him a small crack of a smile.    
  
  
“Really? D’oh well… It’s not like I got much choice in the matter. Major Preddy, I accept your offer.” Connolly said with a smile as he returned the gesture, grasping his hand together with hers and shaking it.    
  
  
“Hmph, just because you’re a part of the B-Unit doesn’t mean that I won’t keep my eye off of you.” Marian said with a stern voice. Despite her words, her tone came across as joking and lighthearted.    
  


“Oh? Heh, I’ll keep that in mind, Marian.” Connolly said with a smirk. He looked out the window of the hangar to see the sun was beginning to set on the horizon. Making a mental note to update his phone’s clock to match with the time. “Hmm… looks like it’s getting late out. Is there anything else or would you guys like to pick this up tomorrow?”    


The four Witches of the B-Unit shook their heads since Carla was getting hungry herself. Together, they all left the hangar and headed for the main building where they would be able to grab something to eat.    
  
  
Carla could see Isabelle meandering around the base’s ground and a thought came to her head. Saying that she’ll catch up later, she walks over to the orange-haired girl.    
  


* * *

  
“Hey, Isabelle! Wait up!” Carla shouted to the A-Unit Witch.    
  
  
Said Witch stopped in her tracks, turning around with a rather annoyed look on her face. “Yeah? What do you want, Luksic?”   
  
  
The Liberion raised her hands up in a show of peace. “Hey hey now, come on. I know we didn’t exactly get off to the right footing, but I came here for something that would please the two of us.”   
  
  
The Belgican girl looked on with intrigue. “Hmm? What is it then?”

  
  
“You know Connolly, right?”   


“Yes.”   


“Well, I have a plan that’s going to involve both him and Jenny.”    


“Oh-ho. I like where this is going.”   


“Okay so…”    
  


* * *

  
Following dinner with the Witches, which in its own right was an interesting tale, Connolly found himself back in his room and staring into the ceiling. Now, technically, he was part of the 506th B-Unit. Of course, he has yet to see the A-Unit, only seeing Isabelle from around the base. So far, she seems like an alright person and not the uptight aristocrats that Carla had warned about.    


Still, at least it feels nice to actually be met with some form of camaraderie with these girls. Especially since he’s stuck here. It’s funny to him. A certain part of him longs to return home, a return to things that occured. However, even Connolly knows that it seems impossible to do. The least he could do is fight for a cause worth fighting for. Aliens vs humanity? That sounds like an old super robot anime, but fuck it.   
  
  
As he was about to drift off to sleep, a knock brought his senses back. Looking at the door with an eyebrow raised, Connolly got off of the bed and went over to the door. Gripping the doorknob, he twisted it open to find Jennifer standing in the dimly lit hallway. Even in the darkness, Connolly could see that her face was dusted in a line layer of blush.    
  
  
“O-Oh, h-hello, Connolly. L-Lovely night out, i-isn’t it?” The Night Witch stuttered as she looked at him.   
  
  
“Ah, Jennifer. W-What do I owe the pleasure?” He asks her while tilting his head to the side.   
  
  
“W-Well...y-you see… Um, it seems that m-my door’s lock g-got c-changed.”    
  
  
“Hm okay then. What does this have to do with me?”    
  
  
“I-If it’s o-okay with you…” Jennifer slowly inhales. “I wish to sleep in your room tonight!”    
  
  
Now it was Connolly’s turn to blush beat red. “U-Uh, you sure about that? Why don’t you... ask someone else for the night?”   
  
  
“W-Well, they’re a-already asleep and I h-hate to wake them up. P-Please, Connolly, just this one t-time until w-we get my l-lock sorted out…”   
  
  
Connolly thought about his answer. He knows that if anyone finds out about Jennifer sleeping with him, especially Marian, he’s a dead man. Still, he couldn’t exactly say no to an adorable face like Jennifer.    
  
  
“O-Okay fine.” He finally said with a sigh, opening the door wider for Jenny to come in.   
  
  
“Oh, t-thank you, R-Raynard!” She said with a smile on her face as she entered the room.   
  
  
Making sure that no one saw Jennifer entering his room, Connolly closed the door behind him. Moving towards the bed, his face becoming beat red.    
  
  
“S-So, y-you like to s-sleep on t-this side?”   
  
  
“A-Ah… I-I’ll sleep o-on t-that s-side.” Jennifer replies, moving to the bed and getting into the sheets.   
  
  
Connolly soon joins with her, taking up the opposite of the king-sized bed. “J-Just s-so you know, t-this is only for tonight because y-you’re my friend, Jennifer.”   
  
  
“C-Call me, Jenny.”    
  
  
“W-What?”    
  
  
“A-All of my f-friends call me J-Jenny a-and since w-we’re friends… I-I don’t mind…” She said, starting to cover her face with the blanket.    
  
  
“A-Ah… o-okay then, J-Jenny. G...Good night.” He said before slipping into the covers and fall into a deep sleep.   


* * *

In a bush a little ways away from Connolly’s room were two figures hiding in it and they were laughing like manics.    
  
  
“Ha ha ha! She actually did it! That Jenny and Connolly are too cute together!” Isabelle laughs hysterically while clutching at her side.   
  
  
“Of course she did! I know Jenny too well.” Carla replies, looking at the sleeping pair on the bed. “Oh how I wish I had a camera with me to make this memory last longer.”    
  
  
“A shame, but enough of that. Let’s get back to our bunks before someone finds us.” 


	5. Chapter 5: Experimentations

Chapter 5: Experimentations 

February 26th, 1945 7:00 hours

* * *

Warm and soft light enters the room, casting light onto Connolly’s face. The pilot groans before opening his eyes, staring into the ceiling. This was a part of his daily routine so far in this new world, waking up at 7 to do a 15 minute exercise routine before going out to get breakfast.    
  


However, when he started to move his limbs, Connolly found them strangely heavy. Like waving through snow. Turning his head to his left, he made the discovery of what it, or rather who, is.    


Snoring peacefully next to him, while lightly clutching his arm, was Jennifer. Her eyes closed as her mouth opened slightly as air rushed in. Inhale and exhale. Connolly couldn’t help but make the fact that Jennifer was absolutely adorable while sleeping, her face soft as she slept next to him. Another fact that he made was her smell. It was akin to something like citrus or lemony. Quite pleasant, he notes. 

A part of his brain honestly wishes that he would have it like this, but even he knew that she needed to get out before the rest of the B-Unit, or more specifically Marian, finds out. Moving his free arm around, he lightly shakes Jennifer’s shoulder. 

“Jenny? You need to wake up. Like right now as a matter of fact.” He urges as he hopes the Night Witch would wake up. 

However, Jennifer didn’t wake up from her sleep. A side-effect of her being a Night Witch for whenever she sleeps, she would sleep like a brick. Nothing outside of an explosion or the alarm of a Neuroi attack would wake her up.   
  
  
“Ngh… Ray…” She muttered something in her sleep before moving in more to his arm.    
  
  
Connolly’s heart began to race. What can he do? He knew that if he doesn’t get her out of his room, there’s going to be hell to pay and it’s likely going to be him. Turning to the door, he made sure that there were no sounds of someone approaching his room. Moving back to the Liberion girl, Connolly thought about how to at least remove his arm from her grip. Beginning to wiggle it, he moves it towards his body.

Painstakingly, Connolly was able to finally be able to remove his arm from Jennifer’s grip. The girl lightly groaned something in her sleep, continuously mumbling. Thinking on how to fool Jennifer, Connolly grabbed one of the spare pillows from his side and gave it to her. Almost immediately, Jennifer tightly grasps the pillow, bringing it close to her chest. She seems to be lull to a deeper sense of sleep with a light drooling smile on her face.

Sighing at the rather cute sight, Connolly decided to forgo the exercise and just head out for breakfast. Closing the door behind him, Connolly heads toward the common area of the Witches’ barracks, where breakfast is usually served. 

Entering the spacious room by the northeast section of the building, Connolly could see that Marian, who he always notes as having a smokey type of smell, was setting out breakfast on a table near the window of the room. He watches as Marian sets down a pan of something smoking bellowing out of it. As he got closer to the table, the contents of the pan revealed more. It seemed to have fat German, Karlsland, sausages with eggs and some form of cabbage overlaid on top of it. Next to the pan was a plate of some type of hash brown. 

“Hello there, Marian. What’s for breakfast today?” He asks her as he sits himself at an open seat. 

“Hmph, if it’s something you want to know. It’s sausages with egg whites and kale. The side dish is hash brown.” Marian said, crossing her arms on her chest. The air seemed a little tense, but there was a hint of playfulness to it. 

Soon enough, Carla and Geena came from around the corner. Carla wore that trademark smug smile on her face, like she was proud of something that she did, something that Connolly couldn’t exactly pinpoint. Geena had that hard pokerface, the impenetrable blank look, while holding her crossword puzzle with her. That’s something that he didn’t quite understand. Did Geena always carry a crossword puzzle with her everywhere? 

“Where’s Jennifer?” Geena asked, raising an eyebrow as she noticed the empty seat next to Connolly.

Connolly, quick to react, sprang up. “O-Oh, I already went to her room and told her about breakfast, b-but I think she was knocked out of it. Barely even reacted to me.” He said, hoping that Geena would at least buy the fact and that there won’t be anyone that goes to check her room.

Geena looked at Connolly for a moment, gauging his reactions. Whether or not she bought, he doesn’t know as she simply shrugged and began to eat into her breakfast. 

Giving a mental sigh of relief, Connolly dug into his own breakfast, tasting the grilled sausages. It had the usual spice and smoked grill taste to it. Of course, not that he’s complaining about it. In fact, it was some of the best damn food he had in a very long time. Compared to the MREs of the USAF, the semi-good meals of Martinez Security, this was a god send. Of course, he couldn’t feel but remember someone that wasn’t present. 

“Where’s Flight Officer Bergendal? I thought she would be here for breakfast.” He asked at the open table, looking between the three Liberion Witches.

“Ah, that’s because she left early at dawn. Apparently, the mechanics pulled an all nighter and they managed to get her Striker Unit working again. By her own words; ‘I need to get back before the Princess flays my skin.’” Geena said, taking a break from eating to answer his question.

Marian gave a huff underneath her breath. “About damn time too. I was getting a little sick and tired with that damn aristocrat roaming around. Did you know that she fucking block the door to the workshop with phone books? Phone books! I have no idea how or where the fuck she got them, but it took me a solid half hour to remove them all. That damn asshole.” She muttered before biting into her eggs. 

  
  


Carla, in the meantime, seemingly continuously wore that smug grin on her face. From his time with Geena, Connolly was warned about her usage for pranks. Even so, a lot of it points to either her or Isabelle, perhaps even both. So does that mean that it was those two that changed Jennifer’s lock? Likely, but he doesn’t have any evidence

  
Soon enough, everyone was finished with their breakfast, complementing Marian for her good cooking.    
  
  
“Oh Marian, I was told by some of the mechanics that your XP-51G came with the supplies from Paris. I think they said it’s in Hangar 3.” Carla said, looking from her spot at the table.    
  
  
Marian smirked with confidence. “Finally, something is going my way. I’ll head down there after putting these things away.” She turned to look at the group. “Anyone want to be there when I try it on?”    
  
  
Carla immediately nodded her head, clearly grinning like a Cheshire cat. “Yeah, I’ve been itching to know about this XP-51G myself.”   
  
  
Geena shook her head. “Sorry but I can’t. Need to start the next month’s worth of schedule and supplies.”    
  
  
Connolly shrugs his shoulders. “Sure, I’ll come along. I’m in the same boat as Carla.”    


* * *

  
  
10:50 Hours

The trio enter the hangar, seeing the new Striker Unit on the launch unit. Silver in its color, it staunchly contrasts the olive green drab color of the launch unit. A white Liberion Roundel on the fuselage clearly indicates the affiliations of the Unit. Compared to the Marian’s old Unit, to which Connolly discovered that it was a F4F Wildcat, this new prototype boasts some powerful thrust to weight due to a new lightweight design. 

  
  


Carla whistled impressively at the sight of the Striker Unit. “Well, would you look at that. I must say Marian, you certainly have a good Striker Unit on your hands here.” 

Connolly nods his head. “Yeah, even if I don’t exactly understand it, there’s something special about it.” 

Marian beams with enthusiasm at the compliments she receives from Carla and Connolly. “Well… thanks you two. I’m going to give it a spin right now.” She said, going up the stairs to the platform. 

However, before she could step into the Striker Unit, Carla stopped her. “Marian, wait! Along with the Striker Unit, there’s a flight suit for you to try on to get the maximum output of your Striker.” She said before grabbing a suitcase next to the platform and handing it to Marian. 

Intrigued by it, Marian grabs the suitcase and moves to the table next to the launch unit, with Connolly and Carla joining next to her. She unlatches the suitcase and opens it. However, she wasn’t expecting this. 

“O-Oh my god…” Marian said with a gasp. “W-What the fuck is this?!” 

“Now now, Marian. This flight suit will allow you to reach your full potential in the Unit, allowing you to get to your top speed.” Carla said with a confident look on her face. 

“...It’s a bikini, Carla…” Connolly states the obvious, voicing his own opinion. 

Indeed, inside the suitcase was a flight suit, but not the kind you were expecting, but a bikini. The bikini itself was silver in color, matching the XP-51G’s color scheme. It even has a blue star on the right side. 

Marian could feel the color on her face as she lightly picked up the two piece bikini. “I...I don’t think I will do it…”

“Oh? But then how would you get to your top speed? With this flight suit, air drag will be heavily minimized. I believe that’s a win for you since you want to go faster than Flight Lieutenant Yeager did you not?” Carla said, pulling up with one of her shit-eating grins. 

Marian looked at her before staring back down at the bikini, a heavy blush beginning to form on her face. “F-Fine… You win Carla.” She said before snapping up at Connolly. “You. Out.” 

“W-What? I-I don’t- Hey! Alright alright! I’m leaving!” Connolly shouts as he is pushed out of the hangar by a blushing Marian. Closing the door behind him, he decides to head to the front of the hangar and wait for them.

Just as he got there, Connolly could hear the doors opening up. “Marian must have finished huh?” 

As the doors finally opened up, Connolly could see a heavily blushing Marian wearing that two-piece bikini, clutching the top of the right leg and having her other hand underneath her breasts with her familiar deployed. Next to her was Carla, smiling victoriously up at a job well done.

“I-I can’t believe I have to do this… but I need the speed to surpass Yeager!” Marian said as she started up the engines, the blue magic propellers spun up. She moved towards the runway before speeding down it. Her speed is moving faster and faster before she pulls up into the blue sky. 

Connolly and Carla watched from the ground as she disappeared, a single silver glint in the sky. Connolly turns to look at Carla. 

“You are, by far, the scariest person I’ve met.” He said, feeling a sweat dripping down the side of his head.

Carla responded by blowing a raspberry at him. “Oh please. It’s true that you need to strip weight to get the best possible outcome. Didn’t the people of the future do that too?” 

“YES, BUT WE DON’T DO IT IN OUR SWIMSUIT!” He shouts back, blushing a bit.

“What’s going here?” A voice rings out from behind them. 

Turning around their heads, they could see Jennifer and Geena walking towards them from the back entrance of the hangar. They soon stop just behind them, also watching the sky. 

“Ah, Geena! It’s good to see you and good morning Jennifer.” Carla said, adding a smile to her sentence. “We’re here to see Marian’s test flight with her Strike Unit. So far, it’s doing pretty well!” 

Connolly could only sigh in exhaustion. He could tell that it would be hopeless to fight against Carla, especially now that Marian isn’t here. He shifted his gaze towards Jennifer who caught his gaze and blush lightly, dropping her head slightly to avoid his gaze.

“Oh, here she comes now!” Carla said, pointing towards the sky that caught everyone’s attention. 

Soon enough, they could see a small silhouette in the distance. It gradually grew closer and closer towards the base. There, they could see Marian flying her new Striker Unit as she returned to base. However, as Marian got ever so closer, both Geena and Jennifer stop in their tracks to stare at the ‘flight suit’ that Marian was currently equipped with. 

Jennifer couldn’t help but stare wide-eyed at Marian’s form while Geena’s face morph into a look of absolute blankness. There was no emotion, no hint of anything, but Connolly could tell that she was disappointed. Whether towards Marian or Carla, he has no idea there. 

Marian, either from the silence from Connolly or Carla or the fact that now she knows that Geena and Jennifer are watching her, quickly shriek as she covers her torso region from the two Witches. “M-Major Preddy! I-I didn’t see you there!” 

“Marian, what is ‘this’?” She asked, emphasizing the bikini ‘flight suit’. 

“W-Well, according to C-Carla, she m-mentions that h-having this as a flight suit w-would help me get to my fullest potential…” Marian stutters with a heavy blush on her face as she tries to get out of the XP-51G. 

“I see.” Geena slowly said before walking over to Carla who failed to react in time. She grabbed the blonde’s ear before dragging her away from the group. 

“H-Hey no! I’m innocent-!” She shouts as she is dragged away by her superior to the back of the hangar. The young Liberion’s screams silenced as they went past the door. 

“Oookay then… S-So Marian. H-How does t-the XP-51G f-fair compare to your old Wildcat?” Jennifer asked the disembarking Witch to quickly move the subject.

“H-Huh? Oh! W-Well, it’s certainly faster than my previous Striker Unit. I think I clocked in around 500 mph in it on level flight. It’s certainly fast but I think I want to go faster.” Marian said, staying near the launch unit. 

“Go faster? Uh… are you supposed to modify a Striker Unit’s capability?” Connolly asked, tiling his head to the side.

“You’re not really supposed to since it would heighten the chance of catching on fire, falling apart, or simply not providing enough magic to power it. Maybe all three?” Marian said before shrugging. “But I’ve learned from Flight Lieutenant Yeager that it is possible.” 

“Ah, hope that you can find what you’re looking for.” Connolly said before the trio could see Geena dragging back Carla to the hangar. 

“There. With that being said; Connolly, you free right now?” Geena asked as she turned her head to look at the MS pilot. 

“Hm? Oh yeah, I’m free.” Connolly said, switching his perspective towards the Major. 

“Good, I wish for you to follow me. There are some matters I wish to discuss with you.” She said before turning to leave the hangar. 

“Alright then, good luck with your Striker Unit, Marian.” Connolly said as he left the hangar to catch up with the Major.

* * *

As the pair reached the main building, there were some personnel that gave Connolly looks with venom in their eyes. It seems that many of the crew haven’t forgiven him for his stunt to get off of the ground. 

“Right, what did you want to speak about?” Connolly asked as he closed the door behind himself as they entered Geena’s office. 

“Well for one, since you’re a member of the 506th, you get a rank and a paycheck.” Geena said as she grabbed a folder on her desk.

“A rank and paycheck? That’s a bit surprising considering that I'm not even from any of your armed forces.” Connolly said with a raised eyebrow. 

“Well, we’re still part of the military. We still get paychecks as the regular soldiers, just depending on which country is hosting us.” She said as she turned around to walk towards Connolly. “Today’s payday so I figure on giving your pay and- AH!” Geena shouted as she failed to see a dropped pen that resulted in her slipping on it. 

Before Connolly could even react to the falling Major, she collided with his chest and they both fell down to the floor. He groaned in pain before he noticed his hand in something soft. He lightly tightens his grip on it before letting go. As his vision cleared, he could see Geena above him and his hand… on one of her breasts. 

“Raynard Connolly, would you please get your hand off of my breast?" Geena said in a serious tone, her aura around her changing to something menacing.

"Y-y-y-y-yes sir, shit no. S-s-s-sorry, Wing Commander!" Connolly quickly shouts as he retracted his hand from her breasts and he helped Geena back up to their feet. His face was burning red from the rather embarrassing situation. Not wanting to get back into that situation again, he opted to simply sit down at an open seat. “Y-You were s-saying?”

Geena coughed as she straightened her garrison hat. Grabbing the yellow folder once again before handing it to Connolly. “With this, you are at the rank of Flight Officer and a paygrade 500 Gallian Francs. That’s 83 USD for us Liberions.” Geena said as she returned back to her desk. 

Connolly opened the folder to see a beige envelope and a small blue with a brass like color splitting it in half insignia. He figures that if he’s going to be a part of the B-Unit, might as well start showing it. 

“Oh and another thing. There are new pairs of clothes for you on your bed. I figured it’ll be better than just wearing that flight suit of yours forever. Anyway, hope you enjoy it.” Geena said as her lips curled up slightly. 

“Ah, well thank you, Wing Commander. I’m sure that I would appreciate it.” 

“Please, call me Geena. Despite that you’re under my command, I’m not one to keep with formalities, not in this unit anyway.” 

Connolly nods as he puts the envelope and pin in a pocket on his flight suit. He turns to leave the office, turning back one last time. “Oh… sorry about ‘that’ earlier.” 

“Accidents happen and since I’m the one that slipped, I’ll let it slide for this occasion. Good day, Connolly.” Geena said before Connolly leaves the room. He decides to head towards his room to get changed into the more fresh clothes. 

* * *

“There he is!” A voice shouted to Connolly before something striking him in the face, forcing him to hit the ground. The feeling of pain flaring up as he groaned. He tried to raise his head but it was immediately kicked in by boots. 

  
  


“You think you’re the boss here, shitnugget?!” Another voice shouted as Connolly could taste copper in his mouth. His vision blurred as everything seemed to be multiplying by double. 

From above him, Connolly could make out at least six figures, all males of various ages. They glare down at him as they all get turns in kicking or punching him. Time blurred for him as he was forced to endure the near limitless assault. His body could only twitch ever so often as a hit connected to his body. He could feel his conscious fading…

  
  


“Hey! Get off of him!” Jennifer? “Stop it right now!” 

  
  


Surprisingly, the assault ended that left Connolly staring up at the sky. He was having difficulty breathing as a familiar brown hair entered his blurred vision. It… honestly felt nice, feeling a sense of warmth as Connolly could feel coldness creeping their way into his body. “J-Jenny…?” He whispered out to the Liberion girl before his head collapsed to the ground, darkness filling his vision. 

  
  


Why is he in constant pain? Did he piss off some god or shit in someone’s cup in a previous life? 

  
  


The familiar feeling of déjà vu brought Connolly back to his senses. The blinding light from the open window forces him to open his eyes. He moved his head slightly to see that he was in his room, the new pair of clothes laid out on the nightstand next to him.

  
  


“You really have some bad luck don’t you?” A voice rings out next to Connolly to see that Jennifer is sitting in a spare chair next to him. She had a smile on her face as Connolly tried to sit up but hiss in pain. “E-Easy there! Y-You still have f-fresh injuries from them…” 

  
  


“O-Oh yeah… Argh… I don’t think I can feel my face…” Connolly said as he lightly touched his face, feeling the somewhat dull pain from the contact. He could also feel the numbness extending down to the chest region, surely knowing that he does have a cracked rib or two.

  
  


“Mhm… I-It’s going to be like f-for a little while. M-Marian and Geena already punished those responsible. Docking their pay and having them do latrine duties for two months… After Marian set them straight.” Jennifer explained to the bedridden pilot. “Of course… Genna said that she’s considering your opinion as well.” 

  
  


“Really?” Connolly asked, raising an eyebrow at the brown hair Witch next to him.

  
  


She nods. “Mhm, oh and Carla gave you some Cola. She said that it’s supposed to help with inflammation and headaches. But I believe that it’s more of an excuse to get rid of some of her excess stores.” She replied with a small giggle.

  
  


Connolly let out a sigh. “Having cola to the point where you’re breathing it in has to be bad for your health… No matter where I go, anytime I see Carla, she’s drinking coke. Even during breakfast.”

  
  


“Hehe… she has some iron guts as Marian would say. Anyway, just rest up, okay? Don’t take any risky amount of assertions.” Jennifer says before heading towards the door. “Oh and we decided to run shifts on who’s going to take care of you. Or just… t-talk to you. Get better soon, Ray.” She said before closing the door behind her, leaving Connolly in the quietness of his room.

  
  


He sighs as he relaxes on the bed, staring up at the cream colored ceiling. This is the second time since coming onto the base that he received bodily harm. Granted the first time was just a punch to the balls and this was a straight up beating session. Still, the Witches of the B-Unit are an… interesting bunch if he had to say so himself. Granted there’s more out there in the world, both different and similar to his own. 

  
  


At least he’s in good company, so there’s a plus on that front. Maybe he should get some sleep, the sun’s starting to reach to the crest of the mountains in the distance. Sighing as he moved the blankets so that they were close to his chest, Connolly closed his eyes and soon fell asleep.

* * *

  
  


Connolly groaned as he wakes up, wincing a little from the bruises of yesterday. They were still there and aches like hell, but not as bad. His ears perked up when he heard the sounds of sputtering engines, like they were struggling to keep up. Turning his head to the window, he could see a Witch coming in for a landing, her left Striker letting out black smoke as she descended. 

  
  


At first Connolly thought that it was Jenny who received damage, but it wasn’t Jennifer. This Witch had a more black coat with black leggings. She also seems to be wearing a neon crown on top of her head. At her side is a massive gun, one rivaling Jennifer’s. The mysterious Witch limps her way to the central hangar and disappears. 

Feeling a sense of dread and worry, Connolly pushed himself off of the bed. Inhaling as he can feel his bones snapping into place and the soreness of his legs, he walks to the door and, slightly, limp his way to the hangar. 

  
  


Exiting the building, he could see Marian and Geena already entering the hangar. Just as he made halfway to the hangar, he could hear shouting. 

  
  


“WHAT?! WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN BY THAT?!” The familiar shouting of Marian rings out from the open door to the base. Connolly turns his head back to see Carla exiting the building, joining up with him as they enter the hangar. Things went from bad to worst.


	6. Chapter 6: White Noise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologizes for the long hiatus. Several factors in life had prevented me from writing this story. However, things seem to have calm down and we will be back to our regularly-scheduled program.

Chapter 6: White Noise  


* * *

  
  
To say that Marian is pissed off would be a massive, massive understatement. Like a rabid dog, she struggles against the bonds of Carla and Connolly combined with an effort to restrain her from outright killing the A-Unit Witch that came to their Dijon base. Connolly held her right side while Carla held her left. 

“Connolly! Carla! Let me go! I’m going to make this bitch regret being born!” The blonde Witch shouts against the two.

Marian’s outlet for her anger was A-Unit Witch, Heinrike Prinzessin zu Sayn-Wittgenstein. She had just arrived at the base following damage received to her Striker Unit which forced her to come to the closest base, Dijon. However, that’s not the issue that has Marian foaming at the teeth. 

It was the fact that Jennifer, who Heinrike encountered during the night patrol, had been shot down and landed somewhere in Karlsland. Heinrike confirmed it herself after Jenny told her to retreat back to the Dijon base, saying that she was going to try and drive away the Neuroi.

Marian, refusing to accept such an answer, immediately tried to strangle the wounded Witch before her. Shouting such as “No Witch gets left behind!” and such. Honestly, it was a miracle that both Connolly and Carla managed to restrain her before she killed Heinrike. Now to hold back a Witch that has a horse for a familiar proved to be slightly more difficult than one would first imagine. Connolly couldn’t remember the last time someone was this strong to continue pushing. 

“Flight Lieutenant Marian Carl, you will cease this child’s play right now.” Geena finally raised her voice to the Flight Lieutenant, stepping closer to the trio. “And you two can let go of her now.”

Marian ceased at her struggling, looking dead on at Prinzessin before nodding her head. Connolly and Carla let go of the blonde Witch. She sighs before straightening herself out, but continues to bore eyes of hatred at the A-Unit Witch. She huffs as she crosses her arms to her chest.

“There, now then. Squadron Leader Wittgenstein, you must understand the situation that placed the B-Unit in. After all, you of all people should know the lengths this unit would go for if one of its own gets into trouble.” Geena sternly explained to the aristocratic Witch. 

“...Ja.” A quiet whimper came out of her lips, clearly aware of the fact that she sees the reason for it.

“...So what do we do now?” Carla asked Geena with a raised eyebrow, clearly concerned about the fate of their missing Witch.

Geena sighs as she rubs the back of her neck. “I’ll have a word with the brass to see if we can mount a rescue operation into Karlsland. Clearly, if an operation were to be approved, we need to be quick and effective in our search. Even though there is a bridgehead across the Rhine, we won’t be with Allied support. At least we know that she was shot down around the region of the Black Forest. However, until then, we must be on standby when we get the word.” Her stern word set everyone straight before shifting to Heinrike. “And we shall be having a discussion about chasing down Neuroi for personal glory.” 

Heinrike merely nodded her head as she followed the Major out of the hangar and probably headed into her office. 

The trio watched as they left, the tension filling the air as they silently tried to calm themselves down. After all, Jennifer has been shot down somewhere over the Black Forest, but it still doesn’t help them. Was she hurt? Is there Neuroi chasing her as they speak? Or worst of all, was Jennifer dead? However, they have to remain holding onto the hope that she is alive. 

“I guess that’s that, huh?” Connolly said, finally breaking the silence from the quiet hangar. “We wait until we get the all clear to move?”

“Well what did you expect, Connolly?” Marian snapping at him. “We can’t just go and leave the base to go and rescue her, as much as it pains me to say it.” She sighs before rubbing her head. “It’s that fucking Princess’s fault. Had she not chased that damn Neuroi into Karlsland, Jennifer wouldn’t have been shot down.” She casts Connolly a look before backtracking. “I-I’m sorry, Connolly. I d-didn’t mean to snap at you. I’m just… on edge right now.”

Connolly cast a worried look to the blonde Witch. “Hey, we’re all on edge right now. Doesn’t surprise me one bit. I had a few run-ins with some people being shot down into hostile territory.” He could tell that Marian does care about Jennifer as he has seen her somewhat close to brown haired Witch. 

“Oh yeah? What did your people teach you about being shot down?” Carla asked him with a raised eyebrow.

“In the event that a Martinez Security pilot is shot down, they must use the Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape to try and escape a hostile battlezone. You would be pretty amazed about how different things would be when you’re completely alone and must use your own guts to try and return to friendly lines. Of course… It was thought with human combatants in mind so I have no idea with the Neuroi.”

Marian hummed before she stood up. “Well, I’m going to blow off some steam. If you two need anything, come find me.” She said before she left the pair in the hangar, most likely going to punch something’s teeth out.

“...Uh yeah, I need to go and check up on my equipment. You need to be in top shape when we get the green light to go rescue Jenny.” Carla says with a bright smile as she stopped her leaning before turning back to Connolly. “We’ll get your girlfriend back.”

Connolly blushed lightly. “Hey, that’s not funny! We’re just good friends, nothing more!” 

“Sure~ Well, see ya, Con.” Carla waves before leaving him alone in the hangar. 

Connolly sighed to himself as he was finally left with some quietness to himself. Still, he couldn’t help but feel a looming sense of dread. It was so palpable that he could actually feel it weighing down on his shoulders. Why? He shook his head from those thoughts. Jenny is still alive. Probably piss that it took them this long to go and rescue her. No, that’s unlike Jenny, she’s too sweet of a girl to be mad at anyone. He suppose the only thing he can do is wait and see how it goes.

* * *

“BULLSHIT!” A sentiment shared by pretty much everyone in the B-Unit, but Marian was projecting their thoughts out to Geena. The senior Witch stood behind her desk, her hands balled into fists as she just finished relying on the orders from General Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe. 

They are unable to rescue Jennifer as Neuroi’s attacks have put a stoppage on any pushing into Karlsland and the B-Unit is needed for the imagery of the 506th. Effectively, Jennifer is considered a dead weight to the rest of the Allied Forces.

Carla, for her, had this defeatist look on her face. Where there was once a bright and cheerful girl is now replaced with a pale and holeless look. Jennifer, to her, is a really good friend. The heart of the B-Unit. 

Marian, as expected, had a face of rage unmatched by anything Connolly had seen up to that point. Her hands trembled as she really thought about punching something, or someone, really hard. There was an aura of unbridled rage underneath her skin that everyone knew that she would blow with a short fuse.

Connolly had a blank look on this face. Even during his time in MS, never once there was a blatant disregard for a comrade that has been shot down over enemy territory. Hell, he was more tempted to head into Karlsland himself to go cover, but the fact that he had a lack of fuel and low armaments brought him back to reality. 

There was a unified thought in their minds. If Allied Command won’t rescue Jennifer, they would do it themselves. But how?

“We could try to head into Karlsland ourselves, the four of us.” Connolly suggested, blatantly ignoring the orders from the higher ups.

“Head into Karlsland?! Are you mad, you stupid male?! You can’t defy their orders! Orders are orders!” Heinrike shouted at him as she got into his face. Oh that’s right, she was still here wasn’t she?

Then, a loud audible sound of bones being broken echoed through the meeting room as Marian, the vanguard of the B-Unit, suddenly appeared to punch Heinrike in the face. The Night Witch didn’t have much time to react before her face collided with the ground. She was out cold within an instant.

Marian breathed heavily above, her fist balled forwards as she started to calm down from the punching. “Know your fucking place. If we want your opinion, we’ll ask for yours.”

Geena sighs as she turns to him. “No, we can’t. The B-Unit must keep southeastern Gallia safe from Neuroi crossing the Rhine. I’m afraid that there's not much we can do to rescue her.” Geena said, her tone becoming more sad with each passing second as the thought of one of her friends is effectively gone.

“...Then, I will go alone.” Connolly said drawing shocked looks from everyone in the room. Even Marian, the stoic and standoff-ish person in the B-Unit, gave him the look of ‘Oh no, not you too’. 

“Connolly… Ray, you know there’s no way in hell I would ever grant a request like that. And I’m sure that Carla and Marian wouldn’t allow it anyway.” Geena said, gaining the nodding from both Marian and Carla to him.

“Well you said it yourself. The B-Unit needs to keep Gallia safe, but since I’m an exception to your ranks, I request that I head out instead.” Connolly pushed again. “Listen, I may not be a Witch myself or would even want to be a participant in your war, but you know that I would do anything to help you people. If that means going solo to rescue someone, so be it.”

“And would you even expect to get there? I know that you’re not going to use your Flanker to land into Karlsland.” Carla said as she lightly rubs her fingers. 

“Well, this is an airbase right?” Connolly said, drawing questioning looks from the trio. “I mean, you could ask for certain equipment and not many people would bat an eye right?”

“What are you getting at, Connolly?” Marian asks as she crosses her arms to her chest.

“Get me a plane, preferably one with two seats and something that I can land with possibly no air bases over there. I believe they are called ‘liaison aircraft’?” Connolly explained, looking at them. “I can get over there, find her and bring her back. It’ll be easy as pie.” 

“And if you get shot down yourself?” Carla asked, her voice on a more whispered side. She seemed hesitant to have another friend shot down.

“I’ll make sure that I’m not shot down. If I am…well, we’ll find a way back to Gallia. You can mark my words on that.” Connolly chuckles for a moment. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to leave you guys in a Connolly-less world.” He chuckles once again before wincing as he clutches his chest, remembering the harsh reality that he still has an injured chest.

“You do know what you’re asking for, right? The fact is that you’ll have little in terms of support and you can’t rely on us to bail you two out. Not only that, but you’re still wounded from your fight yesterday.” Geena said as she taps her pencil with her finger, the thought of sending her friend out to rescue another seemed wrong to her.

“I know. I know. I wouldn’t have asked any other way. Please, Major Preddy. Give me the go ahead.” Connolly was practically begging at this point. He can understand where Geena, and the rest, are coming from, but he needs to do this. He needs to go out alone.

A pause soon follows before Geena sighs. “Alright. I’ll see what I can do in finding an aircraft. But you need to know that it’ll take time for me to find it and have it sent here, yes?” 

Connolly nods his head. “I know and I’m sure.”

" Alright, you better go on standby until I receive word. You’re dismissed, Connolly.” Geena said.

"Thank you, Geena." Connolly said before leaving the office.

* * *

1627 Hours

Connolly resides himself in the hangar. His weapons laid out on the table in front of him in a state of being field strip. It was something that he caught back during his tenure in the Air Force. Whenever he gets stressful enough, he starts to field strip his weapon and then resemble them, mostly for the time and accuracy of it. He was dressed in his new clothes, the M-1943 uniform felt rather comfortable to him, and an “Ike” jacket. 

He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard the sound of a propeller coming in. Raising his head up to the side, he could see a lone aircraft descending down to land. It has high wings and a fixed conventional landing gear mounted on an innovative inverted U square-section tube that supports the wing and it has an all black scheme. It soon landed on the concrete before coming to a stop at the foot of the hangar. Coming in from behind him, Genna appears.

“Ah, it finally came. Connolly, this is your bird, the Westland Lysander from the inventory of Gallia back when their country was occupied.” Geena said as she introduced the aircraft to him. “It was the only thing they could spare without raising any eyebrows.”

“So that’s what that is. Okay then, I can work with that.” Connolly said before starting to reassemble his weapons for the mission ahead. He walks towards the front of the aircraft, putting his hand on the metal fuselage. 

“Do you know how to fly a prop-driven aircraft?” 

“Oh yeah, I had some training in them back when I first joined the Air Force. It wasn’t always the Flanker.” He said with a slight smile before grabbing his gear.

Just before he climbed up into the cockpit, Marian and Carla appeared. They both have a look of extreme worry. Well, more Carla than Marian. 

“Hey, Con. Looks like you’re getting to play as the heroic knight, eh?” Carla said as her lips curled upwards just a bit. Her hands were in her pockets as she eyed him up.

“Even at a time like this, you’re still cracking jokes?” Connolly questioned with a raised eyebrow at the blonde Witch. 

“Hey, someone gotta keep up the morale of the base. Especially now that you’re heading out there. Make sure Jenny comes back, you hear?” Carla said as she lightly pats Connolly’s shoulder. 

And same as before, Marian came running in from the hangar’s door before skidding to a stop in front of Connolly. “So... you’re going now huh? Hmph, bring the Flight Lieutenant home or…” She suddenly moved herself right before his face. “I swear to God, if you die or if something happens to Jenny, I will find a way into the afterlife and skin you. You got me?” She said in that trademark serious voice.

“Uh, yeah. I got you.” Connolly said as he slowly nodded his head in acknowledgement at her. He turned towards Geena. “You said that her estimated crash is in the Black Forest?” 

Geena nods at his question. “Yes, from Heinrike’s description, somewhere near the old town of Lenzkirch. It’s on the eastern portion of the Black Forest. Now, during Operation Bifrost, there were a number of airfields built all over Karlsland to help with the evacuation of the country. Luckily, there’s one by the town so hopefully you won’t have to go far in searching for the Flight Lieutenant. Remember, you are to get in there, search Jennifer and return home.” 

“Yes sir, Wing Commander.” Connolly snaps up to a salute before blinking in surprise. That was the first time he addressed Geena as his commanding officer. Mentally shrugging, he went over to the table to pick up his weapons and stored them in a compartment underneath the main pilot seat. It is unlikely that he’s going to use them but better safe than sorry, right?

Turning back to the group, he gave a two-finger salute as he climbed up to the cockpit of the Lysander. Settling down on the seat, Connolly started the engine. Watching the propellers spinning around and around until the sound of the Bristol Mercury engine revs to life. It was a different feeling to some of the other prop-driven aircraft he had flown, but nothing he couldn’t handle. Climbing to an altitude of 1350 feet, he pointed the aircraft for Karlsland.

Easing the throttle forward, the plane rolls down the runway before taking off into the sky like a black shadow blotting out the sun. The B-Unit watch with bated breath as they solely place their hopes on Connolly. 

* * *

  
1845 Hours

Connolly has been flying east for a good three or so hours. Often, he would take breaks to watch the Gallian countryside or to look at the map that Geena provided to him on his leg. So far, he seems to be heading in the right direction. Directly due east. It’s a sight to behold, to see the Gallian countryside ravaged by the occasional Neuroi raids, but that all changed when he crossed the Rhine River.

Massive destruction on a scale that Connolly hasn't seen before. In all of his time with the Air Force or Martinez Security didn’t hold up a candlelight at the scene of destruction. Houses, destroyed to the foundation. Roads torn up from the ground on which they were a part of. Funny enough, it seems a lot more like Hiroshima after Little Boy being dropped. Even the villages located on the Rhine were experiencing flooding that seemed to spread for some time. Still, he had some way to go before he reached his destination. Though, the more he thought about it, the more he’s starting to think that he’ll be searching for Jenny at night.

Night ops are infamous for any military, that was a fact. Not only that, but he was a time limit as well. He didn’t know exactly how the Neuroi operate or how they just appear. He heard from others something about a ‘Hive’ but he’s not thinking that they are born in the conventional sense. 

Switching the cockpit lights on, the dull red light fills the cockpit as Connolly looks down at the map. It’s something that he took for granted back home. To always know about his location on a real life map throughout the globe. Though that was before he would even imagine that he would be sent back in time and sent to an alternate Earth. Still, he was on the correct path and he would be in Lenzkirch soon. 

The Rhine soon disappeared and now he’s covering a vast sea of forest. Judging from the map, he just crossed over the Black Forest. Soon, he would be at the town where Jenny would be shot down over at. Of course, there was a certain feeling of uneasiness. This is prime hostile territory yet he hasn’t encountered any sign of the Neuroi. He didn’t if he should be relieved or worried. Soon enough, he could see the forest starting to ease up in intensity. He would be soon at the eastern border before it transitioned into a flat plain. He circle the plane around, trying to find the runway that Geena mentioned before the sun set. 

Then, a flash of red to the distance from the east. A searing hot beam of death screams past his wing. Damn Murphy's Law. Twisting his wrist to the right, the Lysander shifted to narrowly avoiding the red laser from killing him. It was Connolly’s worst situation, to deal with a Neuroi with a fucking laison aircraft? Juking the plane around to avoid the red beams, Connolly’s mind starts to formulate a plan to get rid of this Neuroi. 

This form of ‘dance’ continues on for some time, whether Connolly chalks that up to luck or something else he doesn’t know. But the Neuroi seemed to start to predict where he was going to go next. Like a noose tying around a criminal’s neck, the pressure from the beams tightened. Moving the Lysander to the left, a beam connected with the wing, easily tearing the wooden wing apart and forcing Connolly into an uncontrollable dive. 

Panicking, Connolly knew that saving the Lysander is a lost cause so he needs to bail out. Turning around, he remembers the crash course on how to use parachutes that weren't automatic for him. Putting the straps over his shoulders, Connolly reached down to grab his Galil, as if he was going to let it burn in a fiery inferno. The glass to the cockpit was ejected out and he pulled himself out of the burning aircraft and jumped into the evening night. 

Wind snaps at his face as he dives towards the ground, moving away from the spinning aircraft as it crashes into the ground. Connolly could only hope that Jenny wasn’t there. His hand reached for the primary chute and yank on it. The familiar tug on his back and the chute deploy as he slowly drifts to the ground. Either the Neuroi felt smug that it killed or something, it simply retreated to the east, confident to know that it killed a pilot. 

Connolly drifted down to the ground, his speed slowing down until he landed on the down and doing a roll to use up any excessive momentum. Panting slightly at the rush of adrenaline pumping through his veins at the near exposure to his own death, Connolly discarded the used parachute and observed his surroundings. From a good distance ahead is the burning wreck of the Lysander and he knew that he had to get away from it as fast as he could. He doesn’t know if the Neuroi employ some sort of Hunter-Killer units that hunt down bailed out pilots.

Charging the handle to rack the first round into the chamber, Connolly started to move away from the flaming wreckage. He didn’t know exactly where Jenny was at, but hopefully it would be easy to find with the setting sun. Sprinting from tree to tree, he waited to see if there would be any counter attack or anything. Nothing so far, but he was damned if he was going to let a Neuroi get a drop on him for the second time.

Walking up a hill that has a view on the surrounding area below, he could tell that there wasn’t much left in terms of a settlement. Had someone told him that people used to live here, he wouldn’t believe it. Same on the Rhine, a lot of destroyed houses scattered about. A sign near the road has the faded word Lenzkirch on it. At least he was in the right place. But now comes the hard part, actually finding Jenny. Observing from above, he could see something like a scorched mark. Then that’s when he saw it.

A metal part glinting from the evening sun. That has to be where Jenny is at. Judging from the range, it’s a solid 3000 or so feet on the north eastern portion of the ruined town. Hopefully Jenny would be somewhere near the crash site and haven’t gone too far. Going down the hill, he sprints as fast as he could. To be in an unknown hostile environment without any sort of actual cover is a big problem, but Connolly didn’t care much. He was this close and he’s not going to let something squander it. 

Reaching the crash site, Connolly could see various destroyed metal pieces. Upon closer inspection, he could tell that they were from a Striker Unit and it had the blue Liberion flag on it. Well, this was Jenny’s Unit, but no sign of her. Now, he did something no sane man would ever do in enemy territory. 

“Jenny! Where are you?!” He calls out to the surrounding area. Some birds scatter up from the disturbance that he caused. There was a bit of silence before he called out again. “Jenny!?” 

“Ray?!” A voice called back to him, a little but forward into the forest. So Jenny took cover in the forest? Smart girl. 

Running once again, Connolly reenters the forest as he looks around. “Jenny!” He hollered out before he saw something blue not at all meshing against the brown of the trees. Sprinting over to the sight, he could see Jenny was leaning against a tree, looking at him with a wide-eye look on her face. He could tell that she wasn’t expecting him to be there. On her side is the broken remains of her 20 mm AN/M3 cannon, the receiver shattered beyond any form of salvage.

“Ray, what are you doing here?” Jenny asked as he came close to her. “I wasn’t expecting you to come here.”

“Well, the rest of the Unit would have come and gotten you, but your Allied Command thought that one Witch isn’t worth a massive amount of movement into Karlsland. Effectively, they sorta denied me being here, but damn them, I’m not a part of their military.” Connolly said as he inspected Jennifer. 

For how long she’s been here, Jennifer had light scrapes and bruises. Of course… her uniform is slightly ripped at her torso. “R-Really? They… They thought I wasn’t worth it?” Jennifer asked with a disheartenedly. 

“Well to them, but not to us. I mean, sure I got shot down, but I did promise to the B-Unit that I will get you home. We’ll just have to improvise.” Connolly chuckled lightly as he checked their surroundings. So far, it’s been quiet. Turning back to the Witch, he outstretched his hand. “Can you walk?” 

Jennifer lightly blushed at the hand, but shook her head. “N-No.. I think my legs are broken or sprained. It was a pain to get over here.” 

“Ah… Well…” Connolly thought about how to do this before slinging the rifle to his shoulder and squatting down, his back turned to Jennifer. “If you can’t walk, you can piggyback on me until we get back.”

Jennifer blushes to a bright red, however, she couldn’t exactly deny his logic. Shifting slightly forward, she climbs up his back, her arms wrapping themselves around his chest as his arms move down so that she would have good enough support. “Alright… l-let’s go.”

Connolly stands up, noting how light Jennifer was and together, they walk. They follow towards the setting sun, knowing that’s the only direction they got for going west. Even though it was just the two of them, Connolly couldn’t help but get a little unease at the feeling of absolutely nothing. There were no birds chirping, no animals scurrying around. It was no doubt a little spooky. 

“So, where are we heading? I’ve heard that there’s an Allied frontline in Karlsland?” Connolly, deciding to bring up a topic, asked at the Liberion Witch while slightly turning his gaze at her.

Jennifer nods her head. “Yeah. There’s a frontline at the border town of Breisach. There’s a bridge that the ground forces have been using and it’s a staging ground to push into Karlsland.”

“Breisach? Yeah, I remember. It was on the route to get here. Certainly seemed… lively for this side of the Rhine.” Connolly said as they continued on in their trek, their destination was clear.

“Did you know that Marian punched that A-Unit Witch to being unconscious, right?” 

“She did what?” Jenny said before sighing. “Oh I know those two can’t work together, even during a time like this…”

“What makes Marian have a grudge on Heinrike in the first place? From the interactions, as small as they were, I’ve seen between them, it couldn’t have been good at all.” 

“Well, awhile back before you came to our base, Heinrike had engine trouble with her Striker Unit which caused her to make a landing at our base. At the time, we didn’t have Carla, just word that she’ll be coming. So we thought Heinrike  _ was _ Carla. You can tell how pissed off Marian was when she found out, but she and Heinrike were starting to become something like friends. Marian thought it was a breach of their friendships. Anyway, those two vowed to kill each other. Of course, wherever they were around each other, it devolved into something more like a bar fight.” 

“Really? Well, that’s just peachy. It took both me and Carla to restrain her from out-right killing her a while back.” 

“Ugh…” Jennifer sighs with an exasperated look on her face. “Let’s just… continue on walking.” 

* * *

1940 Hours

After a solid hour of walking through the forest, the sun was starting to set over the tree line, coating the forest in pitch blackness. Connolly sighs as he looks up to see that it was getting dark out and fast. 

“Shit, we’re going to need some form of shelter for the night.” He said as he can feel his back being twisted from carrying Jennifer. It’s something that he didn’t mind, but after an hour of walking, it was starting to drag on for him.

“Hmmm… Oh, Ray!” Jennifer says as she points at something up ahead. “There’s a cabin just up ahead. We can take shelter there for the night.” 

“Ah, good eye, Jenny! Alright then.” Connolly said as he crossed over a small hill and, sure enough, there’s the cabin right there. It was well into the forest with tall trees all around it. It should provide a safe enough place to sleep for the night. 

As they entered the cabin, they were surprised to find it well-furnished, the bed was made and even there was some cloth on the table. It seems that the previous occupants had to leave in a hurry. Connolly moves over to the bed and deposits Jennifer onto it, groaning as he felt his bones starting to snap back into place from carrying Jennifer for a good distance. 

“Well, it’s no hotel but at least it’ll get us through the night.” Connolly said as he checked out the window to see if there’s any strangeness going on out there. Nothing. Just the quiet forest with some sort of owl wooing in the distance. He supposes that even in this reality, the Black Forest is a creepy place to be in past dark.

Jennifer lightly giggles at his response. “Yeah, I know what you mean by. It seems that whoever was here last had to leave in a hurry.” She commented as she noticed a picture frame next to the bed. It showed a weathered man, happy with a woman next to him and a little bundle in her arms.

Connolly noticed the frame and the increasing saddening look on Jennifer’s face and quickly reassured her. “I’m sure that they got out in time.” He said while lightly patting her back. Going over to the window, he pulls up a chair to keep an eye out into the forest. It’s so quiet that it was starting to make the young man mad. “We’ll leave at first light. If we have a good record, we’ll be able to get to Breisach.” 

Jennifer nods her head, it was a plan better than nothing she supposed. “Yeah, hopefully they won’t shoot at us when we get over there.” 

“...Why would they try to shoot at us?” Connolly turned back with a raised eyebrow at the brown haired Witch.

“Well, if I was a soldier that knew for a fact that the lands ahead are completely abandoned with any and all human life and suddenly two people come out from that direction. You know that would be a major shock.”

“Ah… a fair point. Well, hopefully they will see reason and NOT try to shoot at us. Truthfully, I had enough things shooting at me for one day.” He replies with a slight chuckle before coughing slightly.

Jennifer looks at him with a concerned look on her face. “Your wounds haven’t fully recovered haven’t they?”

“Nope and I’m sure with all of these activities, it isn’t going to make it any easier.” He said before grabbing his phone and placing it on a table. “There, I’ll set an alarm so that we don’t miss it. You better rest up, it’ll be a long day tomorrow.”

“What about you? Surely you need to sleep too.”

“Yeah, but I'll take smaller cycles if I'm going to be watching throughout the night.” 

“A-Alright then, Ray. Good night.” Jennifer lightly said before going underneath the covers and closing her eyes to completely rest, glad to be in the presence of a friend.

Connolly watches the Liberion drifting off to sleep before going back to the window. He sighs quietly. “This is going to be a long night.”

* * *

0650 Hours

Morning light peers through the window in the cabin, shining directly into Connolly’s eyes. A few seconds later, the phone’s alarm blares out which causes both of them to wake up. Now fully awake, Connolly went over to turn off the alarm. After turning off the alarm, Connolly could see a notification at the top of the screen. He pales.

“T-Today is my sister’s birthday? O-Oh no… She… She’s going to be devastated to hear that I’m not going to send her a message anymore... “ He silently cursed at himself. He didn’t say his goodbyes to his family and now, he would never will. A sharp jab of pain swells in his chest. 

Jennifer watches the young man’s reaction, seeing his face morph to a sense of missing. Her own face changed to a look of concern and longing. Even though they haven’t known each for very long, she secretly longs for him to be happy. “You have a sister, Ray?”

Connolly’s head shot up when he heard Jenny’s voice as she asked her question. There’s no point in hiding something like that. He slowly nods his head. “Yeah, a younger sister. She would be 16 today. A bit of an odd-ball question, but do you… have any sisters of your own, Jenny?” 

Jennifer nods her head. “Yeah, two sisters. Both older than me and were Witches before me. They’re both retired now.” She said as she leaned slightly on the bed. “They were the reason why I first joined the Marines, they were as well. Right now, they’re working in a factory in Lockport. They still want to serve their nation and provide something to the war effort.”

“Huh. What are their names?”

“Marie and Mathilde. How about yours?”

“Emily. Emily Connolly.” He chuckles lightly. “She always was the rebel kid. Heh, I remember the one time that she spit in her teacher’s face because the teacher was outright bullying one of her friends. She’s a good sister, just a bit… headstrong.”

“Where have I heard that before?” Jennifer said with a sideways glance away from Connolly. 

Connolly blinks for a moment before chuckling slightly. He turns towards the window to see that there’s still nothing out there. He turns back to Jennifer. “Well, we better get going now. Still need me to carry you on my back?”

Jennifer blushes. “W-Well, it’s feeling better now. S-So I think I can walk from h-here on out.” She said as she got out of bed, testing her legs to see if they would give out under her, but they didn’t.

Connolly nodded as he exited the cabin. “I think we might be able to get to the border if we make all haste towards there. Never stopping for anything.” He said as they started their walk towards the west.

“Hey, Connolly? Do you think that… Genna will be mad at me that I was shot down?” She asked him with a raised eyebrow. 

Connolly thought about it for a moment before shaking his head. “No, I don’t think she’ll be mad. Disappointed yeah, but not mad. She figured that you would do something like that for that A-Unit Witch, but she just worries about you is all. Which… I guess that now extends to me since I was shot down as well.” He sighed at that thought. “She’s a scary person when she wants to be.”

Jennifer giggles at his answer. “Yeah, that sounds just like her alright. I just didn’t know if she would be mad considering that I lost both my Striker Unit and my Hispano. Those things aren’t exactly easy to replace.” 

“Well, for right now, let’s focus on getting back to Dijon. We’ll worry about what they’ll think later. At least let’s try and get to the frontline.” Connolly said before turning back to her. “Do you think you can walk now or do you want me to carry you?”

Jennifer thought about it for a moment before getting off of the bed, her legs wobbling for a moment from the lack of strength from the past day. She tests out her legs, stretching and hearing the pops and cracks of the bones. “I think I can manage now. Let’s get going.” 

Connolly laughed at Jenny’s spark and nodded his head. “Ha, righto. Let’s go.” He said before grabbing his pack and opening up the door for them to leave. 

Jennifer follows him, closely behind as she matches up to the pace that Connolly’s at.

And so the two pairs head off to the west, towards Breisach.   


* * *

1336 Hours

It’s been a rather uneventful walk for the pair, keeping themselves within the Black Forest as to not attract any Neuroi attention, but even then, it looked like none had even bothered to deal with them. Connolly couldn’t help but feel rather on edge at the whole prospect of it. Here they were behind enemy lines on foot. For any military, this would be a prime opportunity to simply overwhelm them with numbers and call for their utter destruction, yet none of it happened. 

Jennifer nearly fired off her service handgun at a deer when it rustled a bunch of bushes near them. The brown-hair girl apologizes profusely, clearly thinking that she’s wasting their time and nearly alerting the enemy to their location. “S-Sorry!” 

_ ‘Oh, Jenny. You’re too cute for me to stay mad at you.’  _ Connolly thought. However, before they moved on, a small butterfly landed on her forehead, its small wings fluttering as the two just stood there.

Jennifer had this look of pure joy and wonder on her face as she can slightly feel the butterfly’s body on her forehead. The butterfly stayed there for a few more moments before flying off her head, going to a patch of flowers near them. Jennifer’s eyes shone so brightly and her cheeks had a fine red dust on them. She giggles a little before they continue on with their walk, but with higher spirits than before.

As they walked for the distance, the pair eventually found themselves on a road, all torn up from the Neuroi. Destroyed and burnt out wrecks of vehicles littered the road, acting like a graveyard. To the pair, a sense of uneasiness swelled up in the pits of their stomachs like a knot tightening up as they walked through the wrecks. Surprising, and maybe morbidly, there weren’t any skeletons. 

Connolly gripped his rifle as they advanced through the road, taking glances in between the destroyed vehicles and along the treeline. “Not to scare you, Jenny, but I got a bad feeling about this.”

Jennifer slowly nodded her head. “Yeah, we should probably continue on. Wait a second, what’s that?” She asked, pointing to a bunch of vehicles in the front. 

As they got closer, they noticed that there’s a truck that looked in rather pristine condition. Connolly and Jennifer couldn’t believe their luck, finding a truck in good looking condition, but they still need to investigate if it can still run. 

“Huh, an Opel Blitz. Funny that this one is still here.” 

“Wait, you know what that truck is?” 

“Yeah, a lot of the Karlslandian Heer drove by Dijon uses them, but this one looks like an earlier model than I’ve seen. Can’t believe our luck, huh?” Jennifer said with a light smile as they walked up to the truck. 

However, just before they reach the door, a loud whish sound went past them as a bolt of red laser impacted a wreck. Connolly widened his eyes as he and Jennifer took cover behind a few of the destroyed vehicles, peering over their cover to their right.

Standing at the treeline is a humanoid, or at least humanoid, Neuroi. Standing on nearly two-plane flat legs with boxy arms, it scanned their location with its box like head. At its hands were two red ‘hands’, glowing. Connolly surmised that is where the shot came from.

Connolly looked at Jennifer, gripping his Galil as he flipped the safety. “Looks like we’re fighting our way out of here, eh?” 

Jennifer peers over the wreck, waiting to see if there’s anymore Neuroi that shows up, but there wasn’t. Her familiar’s features grew as she took a potshot at the Neuroi, the sound of clashing metals filled the area. “Shoot, these infantry units don’t take a lot of damage from pistols.”

Connolly leaned up, Galil resting against the rusting metal as he took aim at the unit. Firing a three-round burst, the unit stumbled for a moment before resetting and firing another barrage of red at them. Connolly quickly ducked down as the lasers impacted at the wreck, heating up the metal to the point of being slag. “Shit!” He cried out before transferring over to another car.

Jennifer looked at him for a moment before popping up to fire again, the same result. Little to no reaction from the unit as the red lasers burnt against her cover. “We’re not going to get anywhere at this rate!” She shouted before eyeing up his rifle. “Hey! That uses 7.62×39mm right?”

Connolly looked at her before nodding his head. “Yeah! Why?!”

“Toss it to me! I can use my magic to enhance its bullets!” 

Connolly looked at Jennifer for a moment before peering up, quickly diving down as a laser nearly grazed his hair. “Alright, catch!” He yelled as he threw his Galil at her. Jennifer caught the rifle in her hands as she lightly fumbled it, likely not used to the weight of the rifle. She breathed slowly as she popped up and fired a single shot at the unit, towards the center of it.

The Neuroi stumbled more, stepping back a few inches. “Yes! It’s working!” Jennifer shouted with glee before it was replaced with horror as three more infantry units emerged from the forest. They joined with the first one and began to hammer their location with a concentrated barrage.

“Ah! Is there no end to this?!” Connolly questioned loudly as he one handed his Silver Ghost from his spot, most likely taking potshots that went into the air. He glanced in between Jennifer and the truck. An idea sprang to mind. It’s a military truck, perhaps it would have something in it. “Cover me!” He shouted to Jennifer as he squatted down and ran over to the Blitz.

The sounds of combat echo through the background as Connolly checks the truck. He first opens the cabin doors, finding nothing much. It was when he inspected the flatbed that it changed their luck. Spotting a wooden box near the back of the bed, Connolly opened it to find a whole cache of Karlsland’s egg-shaped grenade with a bunch of blue caps on the top of them.  _ ‘These have to be more than enough.’  _ He thought as he grabbed at least eight grenades and returned to Jennifer.

“Alright, I found some grenades!” He shouted with glee as Jennifer looked at him, breathing heavily. Her lips curl upwards slightly.

“Good! Because I think your rifle is about out of ammo!” She said as she peered over the wrecks, seeing the units standing there, closely together. “Do you think you can hit them from over here?”

Connolly stuck his head out before nodding his head. “Yeah, I used to be a pitcher for my high school's baseball team.” He said with a slight smirk as he grabbed a grenade from the bundle. Pulling the cap up, Connolly calculated the distance between them and the units. With a grunt, he lobbed it high into the air before ducking back down.

The egg-shaped grenade traveled through the air, spinning before impacting a unit in the head. An audible ping rang out as the unit seemed to have been stunned for a moment before the grenade landed down in its open hands. It looked down for a moment before the fuze in the grenade reached zero. The unit was consumed in an explosion, the loud banging echoing through the surrounding area. A charred shadow is all that was left of the unit. 

Motivated by his success, Connolly grabbed more of the grenades and did the exact same thing. It seems that these ground units didn’t exactly know how to react to a grenade landing at their feet or hitting their heads. Explosions and smoke rocked the area as the grenades landed true at their targets and before long, there was nothing left but smoking and charred ground.

Jennifer sighed with pure relief as she sat there on the ground, gripping the rifle close to her chest before realizing that the Galil was still in her hands. She laughed humorlessly as she presented the assault rifle back to Connolly. “Thank you for letting me borrow it. I quite enjoyed firing it.” 

Connolly raised an eyebrow as he smirked. “No problem. You know, I can let you borrow it. Erm, maybe not for any actual missions considering that we have yet to secure a supply of them.” He said as he changed the magazine, putting the nearly spent one in a pocket. 

“Really? Well, I’ll hold up to that. Come on, let’s see if we can get the truck moving.” Jennifer said as they walked towards the truck, now in the clear from any Neuroi. For now. 

They open up the cabin doors, inspecting the interior for the keys. Surprisingly, and still holding up to their lucks, the keys were still in the ignition of the truck. Stepping inside, Connolly turned the key. The straight-six engine sputtered for a moment before the rumbling of the engine roared to life from the inactive it suffered from being there for how many years. 

“Yes! It works!” Connolly shouted with glee, happy to know that their luck is still on their side and they would be able to make good progress to the front. Just as he was about to put the transmission into drive, Connolly made the realization that the truck was stick operated. “E-Erm… Oh crap…” 

Jennifer looked at him with a questioning look on her face. “Is something the matter, Ray?” 

“I uh… can’t drive a stick.” Connolly said as he said as sweat dripped down his face. 

All color drained from Jennifer’s face as a dead look formed on her face. “What do you mean by ‘I can’t drive stick’? Don’t they still have stick drives in the future?” 

“Well yes, but we’ve been switching over to automatic drives for a long time! Not many people actually put faith in the military to not crash.” He defended himself, feeling really embarrassed at the whole situation. 

Jennifer sighed for a moment. “Well, here, let me drive.”

“You know how to drive stick?”

“I’m a Marine, we can do anything.”

“...Fair enough. I’ll be squeezing by.” He said as he shifted over to the passenger seat and Jennifer moved over to the driver side. Her head was barely reaching over the steering wheel yet it didn’t faze her one bit. Connolly suppressed the urge to snicker a little to see someone small going to drive a truck. 

Jennifer gripped the wheel as she turned the stick over and put the gear into drive. The truck lurched forward slightly, finally being able to move under its own power for who knows how many years. It sputtered a few times, the fear of it backfiring and leaving them stuck starting to boil up. But the truck, either through the ingenuity of the engineers who designed the truck or their stupid luck, ran on. It gain speed as it traverses the war-torn road towards west, their destination.

* * *

1321 Hours

“Ray, wake up. Wake up, please.” Jennifer’s voice ringed out to the pilot as he opened his eyes, groaning a bit as the late afternoon sun’s light peered through the windshield. He shifted his vision over to Jennifer as she looked at him. He guessed he must have fallen asleep at some point during the ride, the lack of sleep from the near fourteen hours of being constantly awake, as well as the rush of adrenaline, brought Connolly to a near crash. Hence why he took a nap as they drove through the Black Forest region once they saw that there weren’t any Neuroi following them or attacking them.

“Hmm? What’s up Jenny?” He asked, yawning lightly as he looked outside of the windshield, seeing some hills and rolling plains around them. And then he noticed it. Just outside of the truck is a sign with the words ‘Breisach; 2km’ on it. Connolly looked at Jennifer, noting the look of pure relief on the pair’s face. They sigh in relief. A long journey will soon come to an end. But they still need to get to the town itself and try to arrange a ride to the Dijon base.

“Finally, we’re almost home, Ray! Just a little bit longer and then it’ll be smooth sailing.” Jennifer said optimistically as she put the truck back into drive, rolling down the road towards their destination.

Connolly hummed in agreement as he watched the town coming up. From their spot on the road, he could see the ruined town but in the surrounding area, there were tents and bunker emplacements all over. He figured this would be the case since Breisach is the major bridgehead into Karlsland.

As they crested over the hill, they were met with the sight of M4 Shermans trained their cannons on their truck. The sheer sight of a gaggle of tanks, along with infantry and Witches with tank treads on their legs, made them stop about a hundred feet away from the town itself. They were so close on getting to a friendly line and now this.

"Attention occupants in the Blitz! Get out now and put your hands in the air!” A Ground Witch ordered them.

“...Ah fuck!” Connolly shouted as he and Jennifer exited the truck, their hands raised above their heads as the soldiers advanced towards them.


End file.
